


Friends in Low Places

by 4ce_in_sp4ce



Category: Star Wars: Rebels
Genre: I'm just here for angst and a good time, I've given up on trying to make my fics canon compliant, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Implied/Referenced Drug Use, M/M, a multitude of unhealthy coping mechanisms, aftermath of imprisonment, everyone is concerned, ezra is continually horrified, kallus has no standards, or dignity really, recovering from trauma, suicidality/suicide mention, unorthodox methods of persuasion, very casual nihilism
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-11-26
Updated: 2019-02-03
Packaged: 2019-02-07 08:40:45
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 18
Words: 34,163
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12837480
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/4ce_in_sp4ce/pseuds/4ce_in_sp4ce
Summary: Kallus had accepted that he would likely spend the rest of his life alone and on the run. Nothing involving the Ghost crew goes according to plan though, does it?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> instead of being a responsible person and actually finishing one of my multitudes of WIPs, I decided to just start a new fic. enjoy my new trash pile!

Zeb sat down at the table, glancing around. The bar was dark and noisy, with smoke and unsavory smells wafting through the air. The informant was, as usual, sitting at the table alone. A scarf was covering their face, only their eyes visible, and even they were hidden in shadow. There was a drink in front of them, but Zeb couldn’t see what was in it. They nodded in greeting as Zeb sat down.

Zeb looked around again. “Man, you really know how to pick charming places to meet, don’t you?” The informant didn’t say anything, just slid a small data drive across the table. Zeb took it and put it in his bag. “Still not much of a talker I see.” The informant shrugged slightly, and Zeb sighed. “Well, I’m sure the rebellion will be as grateful for this information as they’ve been for all your information.” He went to stand up, but paused. “You’ve been an informant for almost three years, and I don’t even know your name.” The informant just looked at him silently. After a moment Zeb sighed again and stood up. “You know how to contact me.” The informant simply nodded silently and watched him as he left.

Hera was still working on the engine when he got back to the Ghost. She looked up, surprised. “You’re back quickly. I figured you’d be gone longer.”

“Yeah, well, this informant isn’t exactly a talker. I meet them at some decrepit bar, they hand me a data drive, I leave. The meeting’s usually over in two minutes or less.” Zeb shrugged. “That’s how it’s always been.”

Hera went back to working on the engine. “Well, Kanan, Ezra, and Sabine aren’t back yet, and I’m not done with the engine, so it’ll be a little before we leave probably.”

“Okay. I’m sure I can find something to do.”

XXX

Kallus sat in the bar for a while after Zeb had left. He finished his drink slowly, wanting to avoid going back out into the cold for as long as possible. The wind was bitter and his jacket was getting thin, so he was keen to spend as much time indoors as possible. He’d spent most of the week working at the loading docks which had meant long, cold hours that no one else wanted to work. The pay had been decent though, so it had been okay. Another day or two and he’d have enough credits to get off planet.

He finished his drink and paid, wrapping his jacket around him a little tighter as he walked back out into the wind. It was getting close to evening, so most workers would be finishing up their shifts down by the docks, and they’d be looking for people to work during the night. Not a pleasant prospect given the current weather, but night work always paid better than day work and he needed the credits. If he was lucky there wouldn’t be a lot of workers and the dock managers would be willing to pay double. 

XXX

_Kallus did his best to stay inconspicuous. Staying in the background kept him out of trouble with the guards, which was obviously a plus, but it also helped avoid trouble with the other inmates. Kallus knew his status as an ex-ISB agent made him a target. Hell, he’d probably put at least a couple of his fellow inmates behind bars to begin with. And he knew the guards wouldn’t intervene if something happened. If anything they’d turn a blind eye or even join in, so he was vulnerable. His best bet was to keep his head down, do the work he was assigned to do, and stay as inconspicuous as possible._

XXX

Kallus pulled his jacket tighter around his shoulders. _I can’t even escape the cold on a fucking desert planet._ He’d managed to get another jacket in slightly better condition than his old one, but Jedha was cold as ever. _Why can’t the Empire get kyber crystal from someplace a little warmer?_

He’s gotten word of a major kyber crystal shipment that was set to go out soon. If his information was correct, the ship would be passing through the Ison system, making it a prime target for smugglers and pirates. If he could confirm this and get word to the rebels in time, they might be able to make off with a significant haul of crystals to use in weapons. Until then, though, Kallus was stuck staying in alleyways and freezing his ass off until he could confirm the shipment, it’s cargo, and it’s route. 

Kallus knew he wasn’t the only one watching the storm troopers. He’d seen Saw Gerrara’s men throughout the city all day, which was never a good sign. They were likely planning some sort of attack. He could maybe use that to his advantage, though. He’d been following a young analyst for a couple of days. If he could get ahold of the analyst’s data pad he’d have access to the shipping information he needed and probably a whole lot more. An attack from Gerrara’s men would be the perfect distraction. No one would think twice if a young, inexperienced analyst ended up dead in a terrorist attack on some poor, isolated, out of the way planet. 

It took another three days before Gerrara attacked, but when he did it was exactly what Kallus had hoped it would be. In the ensuing confusion surrounding the sudden firefight, he pulled the analyst into an alley, cutting his jugular and leaving him to bleed out in the dirt. He transferred the data onto a drive as quickly as he could and broke the pad in half, leaving it on the ground next to the dying analyst. Just another victim of Gerrara’s extremist tactics. No one would suspect a thing. 

XXX

The cargo ship was clearly prepared for some sort of attack, but the Ghost was quick. The informant had somehow managed to get a schematic of the ship, so they knew exactly where to target to get the crystals. In and out. Zeb was pretty sure it was one of the quickest ambushes they’d ever done, which was good. Other smugglers and pirates were already starting to descend on the ship when they left. 

It was a good haul too. The amount of kyber crystals they’d been able to make off with was enough to arm the rebels for months, and whatever they didn’t use could be sold for a good price. They hadn’t made this good of a haul in a long time, especially not with something so valuable. 

“Damn Zeb, how’d your informant get this information?” Sabine was going through the cargo they’d lifted. In addition to crystals they’d managed to also get several loads of Imperial grade blasters and some fuel. 

“No idea, but they said they’d gotten a lot of other information along with it, and that they’d send what they found to me after they’d sifted through everything.”

“Well whatever they did, let’s hope they continue, because this is the best load we’ve gotten in probably six months.”

The message had been simple. _Imperial cargo ship will be passing through the Ison system in 8 days. It’s main cargo is kyber crystals. Ships schematic is attached. Will hopefully send more shipping info after I’ve gone through the data. -Lx_ Zeb had given the info to rebel command as soon as he received it. They’d had to act quickly, but the Ghost was already near the Ison system so it hadn’t been hard. 

The informant always signed their messages as “Lx”. Zeb had taken to calling them Lex in his head, it was easier than just referring to them as “the informant” all the time. He wondered if it was their name, or if it meant something else. For all he knew, it could just be two random letters they’d chosen. He liked to think it was their name though, or at least part of it. It was the only thing he had to go on. Three years of being their contact and he didn’t know anything about them. Their name, their age, their gender, where they were from, nothing. He’d never even heard them speak. All he knew was that they were reliable and didn’t want to be identified, by the Empire or the rebels. 

XXX

_Kallus did his best to protect his head and neck, but it was hard to do with his hands cuffed behind his back. At least three of his ribs were broken and he was pretty sure his shoulder was dislocated. He could taste blood in his mouth._

_Finally Thrawn held his hand up and motioned for the guards to stop. They pulled Kallus to his knees, holding him up. Thrawn walked over and crouched in front of Kallus, his impeccable white uniform standing out in stark contrast to the dinginess of the room. “I must say, agent, I’m impressed. Most men would’ve broken by now. Yet you still refuse to give me the information I want. Your will is admirable.” A gloved hand slipped around Kallus’ throat, squeezing. “You can’t last forever though. Eventually you’ll break. You have no friends here, no one to help you. You’ll give me what I want eventually.” Thrawn’s grip got tighter, and the edges of Kallus’ vision began to blur. He tried to struggle, but he was too weak. Thrawn continued to tighten his grip and Kallus couldn’t breathe. He could feel the panic rising in his chest, he needed air or he was going to pass out. Thrawn smiled coldly and tightened his grip even more. He leaned in close. “I will break you Kallus. I tear you apart and destroy that rebel heart of yours.” After a moment he let go of Kallus’ throat and stood up. “Take him back to his cell. Make sure he works in the mine tomorrow. Don’t give him any time to rest or recover.”_

XXX

Kallus sat up coughing and gasping. _You’re okay. It was just a dream._ He closed his eyes and focused on his breathing, trying to calm it down. It’d been awhile since he’d had a nightmare that bad. He was okay though. He was safe.

It took a couple of minutes but he was able to get his breathing back under control. It was still early and he had several hours before he needed to get up, so he laid back down, pulling the blanket up. The room was poorly insulated and the draft was bad, but he’d slept in worse conditions. The wind howling outside was even almost comforting.

He needed to sleep. He’d managed to secure a ride off planet on a smuggler’s ship tomorrow in exchange for working during the run, and the ship left early in the morning. He was sure he’d be put to work almost as soon as they left, so he needed to be rested. It wasn’t going to be an easy ride. He’d manage though. He always did.


	2. Chapter 2

The data Kallus had gotten while on Jedha had turned out to be a gold mine. He’d gotten shipping routes, cargo schedules, ship schematics, everything. With how much information he’d managed to get, it was easier to simply give all of it to Zeb rather than try and guess what would be useful to the rebels and what wouldn’t. Sending large data files electronically was dangerous though. They could be intercepted or traced, both to Zeb and back to Kallus. It was safer to simply meet with Zeb in person and give him the drive, even though in person meetings had dangers of their own.

Kallus sat at a small table in the corner of the bar, waiting for Zeb. Even though meetings like this were dangerous, Kallus liked them. Zeb didn’t know who he was, but it was still nice to see him, even if it was just for a short amount of time. Zeb felt...familiar. 

At times Kallus wished he could tell Zeb who he was. He’d even come close to doing so a few times. But revealing his identity would have consequences. Kallus had dropped off the map almost four years ago when he was arrested. Even since escaping he’d gone by a string of aliases and false names, and even faked his death on two occasions to try and keep the Empire off his back. It had been a long time since he’d existed on paper, and revealing his identity to Zeb would mean he’d have to explain that lost time to the rebellion, and it was completely possible that the rebellion would refuse to believe him. If that happened, Kallus would have to drop off the map again and start an entirely new identity if he wanted to continue being a trusted rebel informant, and he’d likely have to stop using Zeb as a contact. In the end, it was more trouble than it was worth. 

XXX

Zeb sat down across from Lex. As usual, their face was covered by a scarf. They slid a small data drive across the table. Zeb took it and slipped it into his pocket. “You seemed quite excited about this information in your message. Sounded like there’s a lot on this drive.” Lex nodded but didn’t say anything. “You know, this would probably be easier if you would speak.” Lex shook their head. Zeb chuckled. “Yeah, I figured you say as much. Well, Hera’s out getting spare parts for the engine, so you’re stuck with me for a little. Unless you’ve got somewhere important to be.” They shook their head again. “Good. By the way, since you won’t tell me your name, I’ve started calling you Lex because of how you sign all of your messages. Hope that’s okay.” Lex shrugged. “I guess I’ll take that as a yes? You’re very difficult to communicate with in person.” 

Lex laughed quietly. It was the first time Zeb had ever heard them laugh, or really even make any significant noise at all. It was quiet, barely audible over the noise of the bar, but Zeb heard it nonetheless. He smiled. “Ha! So you can make noise! I’m making progress!” Lex laughed a little louder. “It’s not speaking, but I’ll take what I can get for now.” 

XXX

_Kallus knew what was coming. The other prisoners weren’t exactly being subtle about following him, and it wasn’t hard to guess their intentions. He knew they’d attack him in the mine, he’d be stuck in a small enclosed space with no escape route and there wouldn’t be any guards around, not that they’d intervene if they were there. He was walking into a trap and there was nothing he could do about it._

_He dropped into a protective position as soon as they started attacking. Face, neck, torso, those were his vulnerable areas. He had to protect his vital organs. Everything else would heal. Under normal circumstances he would’ve been able to defend himself easily and probably win, but he was still weak from the beating a few days earlier, and his body was still adjusting to the harsh conditions of the camp. In his current state there was no guarantee he could win if he fought back, so simply taking it was his best bet._

_His attackers grew bored after awhile and left him there, on the ground of the mine shaft. When Kallus was sure they weren’t coming back, he sat up slowly, wincing. The beating hadn’t done anything good for his ribs, but other than that he seemed okay. He needed to get working. The camp had a strict daily labour quota and, beating or not, Kallus would be expected to make that quota._

XXX

Kallus sighed. He needed to get off planet. Imperial presence had increased dramatically in the past few days and while Kallus was relatively sure that the Empire thought he was dead, he didn’t want to take any chances. If Thrawn caught his trail again he’d be planet hopping for months, and he wanted to avoid that at all costs. Constant planet hopping required money, and he didn’t have that. He barely had enough to get by as it was. 

Getting of planet was going to be hard. Even with offering to work the run, most ships wanted several hundred credits for the trip, and he simply didn’t have that much. Not if he wanted to be able to afford to eat. He’d figure something out though. Smugglers were almost always willing to trade.

He ducked into a small alley to avoid a large group of storm troopers. He hoped the Ghost had managed to get out safely. If he had to guess, Kallus figured the increased Imperial presence probably had something to do with them. They were good at what they did, but they weren’t exactly the most subtle group of people, and wherever they went the Empire was usually pretty soon to follow. Kallus knew that better than most, considering he’d been the once chasing them for several years. He also knew, though, that no one was better suited to continually escape the Empire than the crew of the Ghost.

“Hey, you there!”

Kallus froze. He turned around slowly, and found himself face to face with an Imperial officer. _Shit._

“Have you seen any of these people?” The officer held up a data pad with pictures of the Ghost crew. “They passed through here recently.” Kallus shook his head. The officer frowned. “What, don’t you have a voice?”

Kallus dipped his head. “Sorry. I haven’t seen them.”

The officer narrowed his eyes. “You will address your superiors as ‘sir’.”

“I haven’t seen them, sir.”

“These outer planets are so uncivilized,” the officer muttered as he walked away.

Kallus walked off slowly, not wanting to draw any more attention to himself. That was close. He needed to get off the planet. Now. 

XXX

Kallus was sore and the cargo bay wasn’t comfortable, but it was a ride off planet, so he was fine with it. 

XXX

Sato raised his eyebrows. “This is quite a bit of information. How did your informant manage to get his hands on this?”

Zeb shrugged. “No idea.”

“There are shipping schedules, cargo manifests, ship schematics, this is a treasure trove.” Sato flicked through the data files. “I have to admit, Zeb, your informant is quite impressive. I don’t think they’ve given us bad information yet, and this is more than I could’ve possibly hoped for.” He looked up. “Any chance you might be able to convince them to join the rebels full time?”

“Trust me, I’ve tried. They don’t seem interested.”

“Well, keep trying. We could definitely use someone like them in our operations.”

Zeb nodded. He doubted he’d ever convince Lex to fully join the rebels. He’d tried on several occasions but to no avail. Hell it’d taken him three years to get Lex to interact with him outside of simply handing him a data drive, and even then it’d been minimal. 

He wandered back over to the Ghost. Hera was looking over building plans. She glanced up as Zeb approached. “Oh, good, I was going to call you over soon. I need your opinion on an entry plan.”

“Is this for the fuel depot?”

“Yeah. If we were to enter from the west side, would you be able to provide covering fire from up here?” She pointed to a part of the schematic.

Zeb studied it for a minute. “Yeah, that’d be doable. It’d be best if there were two of us up there though.”

Hera nodded. “Okay. I could probably put Sabine up there with you. We’re probably going to be doing a lot of these runs now that we have all that information from your informant.”

“Yeah, I have no idea where Lex got all that, but it’s a gold mine.”

Hera raised an eyebrow. “Lex?”

“They sign all of their messages ‘Lx’, so I’ve started calling them Lex.” Zeb shrugged. “They didn’t seem to mind. And it’s not like they’ve given me anything else to call them.”

“They really are rather mysterious, aren’t they?”

“I don’t even know what they look like.”

Hera looked at him incredulously. “Wait, seriously?”

He shook his head. “They always wear a scarf around their face. I’ve never heard them speak either. I know literally nothing about them.” He paused. “I’ve always wondered if I know them somehow.”

Hera frowned. “What do you mean?”

“As far as I can tell, I’m their only contact in the rebellion. Why me? Why not someone else? Or multiple people? Most of our informant have at least three contacts. And those that don’t generally contact people in the rebellion that they specifically know. So the logical explanation is that I know who Lex is, or at least they know me, they just don’t want me to know who they are.” He shrugged. “It’s a weird thing to think about.”

“That does make sense, I guess. Maybe they do know you.” She paused. “I wonder why they won’t tell you who they are though.”

Zeb shrugged again. “No idea. And I don’t know who they’d be either. I can’t think of anyone. And unless something happens, I’ll probably never know.”


	3. Chapter 3

Thrawn looked at the data carefully. The rebels had been quite active lately, more than usual. It’d started off with an attack on a ship carrying kyber crystals, weapons and fuel a few weeks ago, and since then attacks on ships had increased steadily until there was almost one a day, if not more. 

The attacks weren’t random either. They were targeting ships with valuable cargo, and they were attacking at the most vulnerable parts of the route. The rebels seemed to know exactly where on the ship to target to get what they wanted too. Their attacks were too frequent, too planned, too precise. They had to have gotten this information from somewhere.

He pulled up a picture from the terrorist attack on Jedha. A young analyst laying in the dirt surrounded by blood. His jugular had been cut. His official cause of death was collateral damage from a terrorist attack, but Thrawn doubted that. It was clean and almost surgically precise, not the sort of thing you’d expect in a terrorist attack. Someone had killed this analyst specifically, and made it look like he’d simply died in the attack. Thrawn had an idea of who the killer was. This style of killing, precise and efficient, was the calling card of an agent Thrawn had supervised several years ago. 

Officially, Alexsandr Kallus was dead. He’d died in an explosion about a year ago. The body had been too badly burnt to positively identify, but his DNA had been found on and around the body, and that had been enough for command. Thrawn had never believed it though. It was too convenient, and Kallus was too careful to have been caught in the explosion like that. He couldn’t prove it, but Thrawn knew Kallus was still alive and feeding information to the rebels.

He turned his attention back to the rebel attacks. They’d been targeting primarily ships and depots carrying fuel and weapons. There was a fuel depot on Tatooine, close the most recent rebel attack. Given their pattern of attacks, it would likely be there next target. The recent attack appeared to have been carried out by the Ghost, so if he was lucky, it would be the Ghost that carried out the attack on Tatooine. He smiled. That would be quite the haul indeed.

XXX

Kallus had to admit, he was impressed by how well hidden the fuel depot on Tatooine was. It blended in to the surrounding buildings, and was clearly designed to go unnoticed. This made the recent uptick in activity just that much more concerning. It was almost like the depot was trying to draw attention to itself. 

Kallus frowned. This wasn’t good. It felt like bait. He needed to get word to Zeb that the Empire might have caught onto their attacks, and that they needed to be careful.

A flash of colourful hair caught his eye. The person was wearing a cowl, but Kallus could’ve sworn he recognized a certain young and colourful Mandalorian. _Please tell me the Ghost isn’t here._ He pulled his scarf up around his face and followed the girl carefully, not wanting to alert her to his presence. The crew of the Ghost were smart, but he knew them well enough to know that it was entirely possible that they’d fall for Imperial bait. He’d been the one setting that bait one several occasions in the past. 

Before long, Kallus noticed a blind, bearded man sitting outside of a small bar. _Shit._ If Kanan’s here, that’s almost definitely Sabine, and the rest of the crew is probably inside. This was bad. He didn’t want to reveal himself to them, that could go wrong very easily, but he had to warn them. This was almost definitely a trap, and they were about to walk right into it. 

Before he could do anything the crew came out. They were dressed as nomadic desert travellers, clearly trying to blend in. They began walking towards the depot, splitting up as they went, and Kallus followed quickly behind them. He caught up to Zeb in an alleyway, grabbing his arm.

Zeb turned around quickly, weapon already half drawn. He frowned in surprise. “Lex? What the hell are you doing here?” Kallus gripped his arm tightly and motioned towards the depot, shaking his head. “What, the depot? Yeah, it’s a fuel store. It was mentioned in the data you gave us.” Kallus shook his head urgently. “Listen, I can’t hang back, Ezra and Sabine need me to…”

An explosion shook the street, throwing Zeb and Kallus against the wall. _Shit._ Kallus got up and began running towards the depot. He needed to get them out of here. A fire fight had already started, and he slammed into a wall to avoid a blaster shot. This was bad. The Empire had set up an ambush, and were pushing the crew into the building. Ezra was on the ground, knocked over by the blast, and Kallus grabbed him, pulling him behind a row of barrels. A shot hit a barrel to their left, and it exploded into flame. _We’re not safe out here. We need to move into the building._ Kallus hesitated. The stormtroopers were pushing them towards the building, so that meant it was part of the trap. There was something in the building waiting for them and Kallus wasn’t too keen to find out what it was, but they didn’t have any other option. It was too dangerous out in the open. He pulled Ezra through a doorway and into a dimly lit hallway, almost running into Hera.

Zeb was by the doorway, bo rifle drawn. “Karablast, what the hell happened?”

“We were ambushed. This was a trap.” She glanced up at Kallus and pointed her blaster at him, frowning. “Who the hell are you?”

“That’s Lex, my informant.” Zeb glanced out, pulling back in as a blaster shot flew by. “He grabbed me in the alley. I think he was trying to warn me, but it was a bit late.” A larger shot hit the wall, causing the building to shake. “We need to get further inside. They’ll breach the entrance soon.”

Hera nodded, lowering her blaster. “I saw Kanan and Sabine get in through one of the side doors, so we’ll try to meet up with them.”

Kallus followed them, his own blaster drawn. _This is a bad idea…_ They didn’t really have a choice though. They couldn’t head back outside, not with the incoming fire, but Kallus doubted anything much better was waiting for them through the door at the end of the hallway.

Hera stopped as soon as she opened the door, raising her hands slowly in surrender, Zeb and Kallus quickly following suit. They were faced with a line of stormtroopers, their blasters drawn. 

“Drop your weapons. Slowly.” A trooper approached them, cuffing each of them as soon as their weapons were on the ground. The trooper pulled out a comm. “Cease fire. All targets have been apprehended.” The muffled sound of ammunition stopped.

The three of them were herded down a hallway and into a small, harshly lit room. Sabine and Kanan already kneeling on the ground, cuffed. Kallus stopped cold when he saw the third person in the room.

His uniform as impeccably white and crisp as ever, Thrawn sat by the far wall, fingers steepled beneath his chin. A trooper shoved his blaster into Kallus’ back, pushing him forward and forcing him onto his knees. Thrawn smiled and stood up, approaching the crew slowly. “I was worried the trap might be too obvious, but you fell right into it. I don’t suppose I should be surprised though.” He paused. “A Mandalorian, a Lasat, a Twi’lek, and two humans. Quite a ragtag bunch. I’m constantly amazed at how long you’ve managed to elude the Empire’s grasp. No longer, though.” Thrawn frowned and walked over to Kallus. “Now, who could you be? Last thing I knew, the Ghost only had five crew members.” 

Kallus closed his eyes, trying to keep his breathing calm. This was bad. This was _really_ bad. The Empire thought he was dead, and he’d hoped to keep it that way, and even if he couldn’t there were few people he wanted to run into less than Thrawn. He tried not to flinch as Thrawn grabbed his scarf and pulled it away from his face, but only partially succeeded. 

Thrawn raised his eyebrows in surprise. “Alexsandr Kallus. I wondered when I would run into you again. I never did believe you’d died.” He smiled coldly. “I really did bring in quite the haul today, didn’t I? The crew that’s been a thorn in the Empire’s side for far too long, and the traitor who helped them.” He struck Kallus across the face, hard enough that he could taste blood. Thrawn leaned down, wrapping his hand tightly around Kallus’ throat, mouth by his ear. “You’ve caused me a lot of trouble, agent. I’m going to enjoy torturing you until you break.” He stayed there for a moment, Kallus struggling to breath under his grasp, before letting go and standing up, leaving Kallus coughing. “Take them to a holding cell and get the interrogation room ready. I’ll start with the traitor.”

XXX

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this is a short update, but I'm hoping to get one or two more done during break before classes start up again. Hope you enjoy!


	4. Chapter 4

Zeb’s mind raced, trying to think of some way to get them out of this situation. This was bad. They’d walked right into Thrawn’s trap, and he wasn’t sure how they were going to get out of it. Thrawn was meticulous; his plans were thorough and well thought out. It was going to be hard to get out of this one. 

He couldn’t help but glance in front of him. What the hell was Kallus doing here? And why had he been posing as Lex? He looked like Lex; the right height, the same clothes and scarf, the same sense of quiet cautiousness. But he couldn’t be Lex. Lex was a rebel informant who set up meetings in dingy bars. Kallus was an ISB agent who spent several years trying to kill them. They couldn’t be the same person. 

It happened so quickly that Zeb almost missed it. Kallus had apparently gotten out of his cuffs at some point since they’d left the room with Thrawn and he pulled a small knife, cutting the one trooper’s throat and breaking the neck of the other. He grabbed the cuff keys from one of the bodies and tossed them to Hera. “We need to move fast. It won’t take them long to figure out we’ve escaped.”

Kanan frowned. “Why should we trust you?”

“I will explain everything, I promise. But I really don’t think this is a good time for that right now.” He continued down the hallway. “Our weapons should be in the guard room, which should be near the back.”

Sabine glanced at the rest of the crew, then shrugged and picked up one of the trooper’s blasters. “Better to keep an eye on him while we can, I guess. That way we know where he is and can shoot him if he tries anything.”

The guard room was small, but sure enough their weapons were there. Zeb was glad to have his bo rifle back. It’s weight in his hands made him a little more confident that they really could get out of here. Kanan audibly sighed in relief when he and Ezra found their lightsabers.

Zeb whipped around when he heard the door behind them shut. A man in an Imperial uniform stood there. “Were you lot planning on going somewhere?” He smiled triumphantly. “The Ghost crew and the traitor Kallus. Grand Admiral Thrawn will be quite happy with me.”

Zeb started to bring his bo rifle up. “We’re not…”

“You’re going to open the door and let us go, and you’re not going to tell anyone that we were here.”

Zeb stopped and looked back at Kallus, frowning. The Imperial officer frowned too. “And why would I do that, traitor?”

“Kallus, what are…”

“Because we both know the information I have on you, and what it would do to you if I released it.” Kallus’ voice was quiet, but confident. He walked towards the officer slowly. “I could destroy your career. Your life. You know that.”

The officer paused. “You wouldn’t. It would out you too.”

Kallus smiles coldly. “And what’s the Empire going to do? Arrest me?” He moved until he was only a few inches away from the officer’s face. “I’m not ISB anymore, _general_. There’re no consequences for me if I release this info. But it’ll be even worse for you now. Not only am I a man, but I’m also an enemy of the state. Just imagine the scandal.” He leaned in slightly more. “So you’re going to open that door and let us go without a word, or I will ruin you.”

The officer stared at Kallus for a minute before reaching back and releasing the door lock. Kallus took the officer’s blaster from his belt and walked past him into the hallway. Zeb followed hesitantly, not sure what to make of what had just happened. He’d assumed that their escape would end with some sort of shootout and a frantic dash through the streets, but whatever Kallus had done had worked. They slipped out the back of the building into an alleyway, Kallus leading the way.

He stopped after a couple of minutes and turned around. “I’m assuming you…”

Ezra pushed him against the wall, blaster drawn. “What the hell is going on?”

Kallus put his hands up in surrender. “It’s been less than five minutes since we escaped, Bridger. Do you really need a refresher already?”

“You know what he means.” Hera crossed her arms. “Why are you here?”

“I noticed an increase in activity at the depot, which was concerning. I thought it might be bait for a trap, and when I realized you were already here I tried to warn you. I was unfortunately a bit late.” He shrugged. “We managed to escape, but we’re still on the same planet as Thrawn and, while I can’t exactly speak for any of you, I’d like to get out of here as quickly as possible. I’m assuming you came here on the Ghost, but I don’t know where it is.”

Hera raised an eyebrow. “And why should we trust you?”

Kallus frowned. “You shouldn’t. I spent close to two years actively trying to kill all of you. Trusting me is a terrible idea.”

Hera paused, taken aback. “Oh, um, okay.”

“But I also know you’re not just going to let me go, so at least for now, we’re stuck with each other. I don’t have a ship, so if we’re getting off this planet we’re going to have to use the Ghost.”

Hera thought for a minute, then turned to Zeb. “Keep your bo rifle on him. If he tries anything, shoot him.”

Zeb nodded and the crew followed Hera through the alleys to where they’d left the Ghost. He kept his bo rifle pressed lightly against Kallus’ back. Kallus didn’t seem to mind. He walked quietly behind Sabine and Ezra, glancing around occasionally. They did their best to stay inconspicuous, especially as they made their way into the smuggler controlled areas. Men like this weren’t friends of the Empire, but even a small reward would probably be enough to make them talk.

“Shit.”

Zeb looked up. They’d reached where they’d left the Ghost, but in its place was...nothing. No ship, nothing. The area was empty. “What…?”

“Seriously? You left your ship, unattended, in the middle of fucking _Mos Eisley_? And you thought it would still be here when you got back?” Kallus sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “I’m stuck with idiots.”

“Shut up.” Hera sighed. “Okay, we can track down the Ghost later. Right now though we need to get off Tatooine.” 

Kallus motioned down one of the alleys. “The cantina’s your best bet. It’ll be full of smugglers, someone will be willing to give us a ride.”

“And I’m assuming you have the credits for that?” Sabine crossed her arms. “Smugglers aren’t cheap, especially not out here.”

Kanan nodded. “Sabine’s right. We don’t have the funds for that.”

Kallus shrugged. “They’re criminals. They’re almost always willing to trade.”

XXX

Kallus hated bars like this. The cantina was crowded and loud, the band playing obnoxiously over the general conversation. He sat at the table, watching the crowd, fully aware that Sabine’s blaster was aimed at him under the table. The rest of the Ghost’s crew were working their way slowly through the crowd, trying to find someone willing to give them a ride off planet for relatively cheap.

“You seem awfully nervous, glancing around.”

Kallus looked over at Sabine, who was watching him carefully. “I just want to get off this rock as soon as possible.” As much as he hated them, Kallus knew places like this, and the sort of people who frequented them. _Give me an hour, and I could guarantee us a ride._ It wouldn’t be hard, he’d gotten rides from similars crowds under similar circumstances before, he knew he could do it. He knew that wasn’t going to happen though. Sabine had been left with orders to shoot if she thought he was up to anything, and considering how trigger happy she could be, he didn’t want to risk it. 

“Really? I thought maybe you were looking around for your little ISB cronies, waiting for them to arrest us.”

Kallus rolled his eyes. “Yes, because ISB agents would definitely fit in at the Mos Eisley Cantina. They wouldn’t stand out at all.” It wasn’t impossible though. It wasn’t uncommon for the ISB to plant undercover agents in smugglers’ dens or places like Mos Eisley to help gather information. If there were any, they were screwed; Thrawn would be on them in no time.

A smuggler caught Kallus’ eye. He’d been watching Kallus and gave him a small grin when they made eye contact before turning back to his drink. Kallus watched him a moment longer before turning back to Sabine. “I think I might be able to get us a ride, but that means I need to get up from the table, and I’d appreciate it if you didn’t shoot me. Can you manage not to do that?”

Sabine narrowed her eyes. “What are you planning on doing?”

“Something undignified. Please don’t shoot me.” 

XXX

Sabine watched Kallus carefully. She didn’t like the idea of him getting up and going to talk to a random person, but she still had a clear shot if he tried anything. And if this did somehow get them a ride off of Tatooine, even better. Anything to get away from Thrawn. She didn’t trust Kallus though, and wanted to keep a close eye on the situation.

Hera sat down at the table. “Getting off this planet is going to be…” She paused and looked around. “Where the hell is Kallus?”

Sabine nodded towards the bar. “He said he thought he might be able to get us a ride. I still have a clear shot if I need to take it.”

Kallus talked with the man for a minute or two before seeming to reach some sort of agreement. The man stood up and started walking towards the back of the cantina, and Kallus walked back to the table. “His ship leaves from the main docks in less than an hour. I’ve almost secured us a ride on it, I just need five minutes.”

“You expect us to let you out of our sight?” Hera scoffed.

Kallus glared at her. “Do you want to get off this planet or not?”

“Sabine, go with him. Make sure he doesn’t try anything.”

Kallus muttered something and walked off in the direction the other man had walked, Sabine following him. He stopped outside of a door on the back wall and turned to Sabine. “Three minutes. Just give me three minutes and I’ll be back out.”

Before Sabine could answer Kallus slipped through the door, closing it behind him. Sabine tried to open it but it seemed to have locked. Shit. She glanced around. If she tried to force the door open it would cause a scene, which she wanted to avoid at all costs. They needed to stay as inconspicuous as possible. _Okay, three minutes. Man, if this goes south Hera’s going to kill me._ She stood by the door, trying to look as unsuspicious as she could.

A few minutes later, the door opened again and Kallus walked out, followed by the man from earlier. “The ship leaves on the hour. If you and your friends aren’t there, we leave without you.”

Kallus nodded and made his way back to the table. The rest of the crew had gathered there. Hera quirked an eyebrow. “Well?”

“It leaves a bit of a bad taste in my mouth, but it’s not the worst deal I’ve made.” Kallus shrugged. “The ship leaves in 40.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is quickly turning into a weirdly depressing crack fic and I'm so sorry about it


	5. Chapter 5

Zeb sat against the wall of the cargo bay. The ship was small so the cargo bay was cramped, but it was a ride off of Tatooine, so Zeb wasn’t going to complain that much. He glanced over at Hera. “Did we ever figure out where this ship is actually going?”

“Sleheyron.” 

“Oh, well that’s great. We’re heading directly into Hutt controlled space. I’m sure this will go just great.”

“I’d rather deal with a Hutt than with Thrawn though.” Kanan was leaning against one of the cargo crates. “At least we’re off of Tatooine.”

“I’m still curious about how exactly we got this ride though.” Hera looked over at Kallus, who was sitting against a crate a little ways away, apparently asleep. “What the hell are we going to do about him?”

Kanan looked up. “I assume you’re talking about Kallus.”

Hera nodded. “Yeah. I mean, how long has it been done we last ran into him? Two, three years?”

“Four, I think.”

“Okay, so where’s he been for the past four years? Why did he show up again now? It’s suspicious and I don’t trust him. I think he’s working with Thrawn.”

“He’s Lex though.” Hera scoffed and Zeb held up his hands. “Listen, I’m having a hard time believing it too, but I’m telling you, Kallus is Lex. Either that or he looks and acts exactly like Lex. He’s been a rebel informant for three years and has never given us bad information.”

“He also gave us the information that got us captured by Thrawn,” Kanan pointed out.

“Everything else on that data drive was good though. Why would he give us a bunch of real, useful information with one trap when he couldn’t even be sure that the rebellion would choose to hit that spot? If it really was an intentional trap it would’ve made more sense to give it to us as a separate piece of information to make sure we followed up on it.” Zeb sighed. “I’m just as hesitant to trust Kallus as you guys are, and I have plenty of questions. But I don’t think we can dismiss him so easily.”

“He did kill those two troopers I suppose.”

“Yeah, but we all know how ruthless he is. I wouldn’t put it past him to kill his own men if it helped him achieve a goal. Besides, you said you’ve never actually seen Lex’s face, so how sure can you really be that it’s him?” Hera paused. “And what was that thing with the general? The hell was that about?”

Zeb shrugged. “You got me. I was wondering the same thing.”

Kanan sighed. “I think the first thing we should do when we get to Sleheyron, before anything else, is try and get some answers from him so that we can figure out our next move.”

XXX

_The guards pulled Kallus to his knees. He could hear Thrawn walking towards him and tried to raise his head, but he couldn’t. His entire body hurt. Even breathing was painful._

_Thrawn laughed quietly. “Look at you, agent. So weak you can’t even lift your head. So much pain endured for people who would shoot you on sight if they had the chance. Are you really willing to die for them?” Thrawn paused. “The Empire was your life for so many years. What changed? You were unquestioningly loyal until…” Thrawn stopped for a moment, then laughed. “Ah yes, of course. Geonosis. You were stranded on the moon with that mangy Lasat, weren’t you? Is that why you betrayed the Empire? For him?” Thrawn leaned in close. “You’re going to tell me how to find the rebels, and when you do I’m going to find that Lasat and make you watch as I kill him. He and all his little rebel friends will die and it will be because of you. You will die knowing that you were the reason for the rebellion’s failure.”_

XXX

Kallus sat up, breathing hard. _Shit. Calm down, you’re fine._ He ran a hand through his hair, trying to calm himself down. He hadn’t even realized he’d fallen asleep. He certainly hadn’t planned on doing so.

He looked around. The cargo bay was dark, but there was enough light to see at least a little. The Ghost crew was on the other side of the room. Ezra and Sabine had passed out almost as soon as the ship had left Tatooine, and it looked like Hera, Kanan, and Zeb had fallen asleep too. 

Kallus sighed and leaned his head back against the cargo crate behind him. His breathing had calmed down a bit but his heart was still pounding in his chest. He should’ve known that falling asleep was going to end poorly. Facing Thrawn again had been...hard. Kallus had come to terms with a lot of what had happened to him, but Thrawn? Thrawn still terrified him. He knew exactly what the Grand Admiral was capable of, and he had the scars to prove it.

He had a more immediate problem though. He’d never revealed his identity to Zeb because doing so would’ve simply raised more questions than it would’ve answered. He didn’t have much of a choice now though. The Ghost crew knew who he was, and they were going to want answers, probably as soon as they got to Sleheyron. But there was a lot of time he had to explain. He’d essentially dropped off the map over four years ago, and over three years of that had been spent on the run. It was going to be hard to explain that period to the satisfaction of the crew.

He was going to be stuck with them for a while though. They may have gotten off of Tatooine, but they still had no idea where the Ghost was, and it was important that they track it down. If someone who knew where the ship was from and who had the right skills got a hold of the ship, they could use the navigation system to track down the location of the rebel base and could even potentially access information on the rebel fleet. They needed to get the ship back as soon as possible, and that might not be a quick process. They had to stay moving though, no matter what. Thrawn would be hot on their tails after Tatooine, and if they didn’t keep moving it wouldn’t be long before he caught up. 

Kallus supposed that once they got the Ghost back he would be taken to the rebel base as a prisoner. He’d been hoping to avoid this since he’d escaped, but there was only so much he could do, and it was out of his hands now. Even if he did manage to escape from the Ghost crew, which would just make him look guilty, his identity as the informant had been exposed, so he couldn’t go back to that. If he wanted to continue helping the rebellion, he either had to face whatever was coming or he had to essentially create a new anonymous informant identity and would have to get a new contact, and he really didn’t want to do that. He tried to tell himself that he didn’t want to do that just because it would be time consuming and Zeb was a convenient contact, but he knew that wasn’t really true. He had enjoyed his meetings with Zeb, as short and infrequent as they had been. He supposed he’d have to face whatever that meant eventually too.

XXX

Zeb was surprised to see Kallus awake. There were still several hours before they arrived in Sleheyron, and everyone else was still asleep. It’d been a long day on Tatooine, and everyone was tired, so he wasn’t surprised. Kallus had been asleep for the first part of the route, but was awake now.

Zeb stood up and walked over to where Kallus was sitting. He looked up as Zeb sat down. “I figured at least one of you would be over here at some point. I’m sure you have plenty of questions.”

“Three years. Lex had been my informant for three years, and I never once even considered they might be you. I figured I must’ve known who they were, or that they at least knew me, but it never even crossed my mind that it was you.”

Kallus laughed quietly. “I don’t blame you. It’s quite a change from how you last knew me.”

Zeb frowned. “Where have you been for the last four years?”

“Here and there. I was arrested and was in prison for a while, ended up on the run” Kallus shrugged. “Four years is a long time.”

“That’s a very vague answer.”

“You asked a vague question.”

Zeb scoffed. “Yeah, well, we’re going to need answers. More _specific_ answers.”

“I know.” He leaned his head back against the cargo crate and closed his eyes. “You should get some more rest. We’re going to have to hit the ground running on Sleheyron.”


	6. Chapter 6

Sleheyron smelled. It smelled like industry and pollution and sweat and greed. People bumped into him as he walked through the street, his hand resting lightly on Hera’s shoulder to make sure he didn’t get separated from the group. He would catch pieces of conversations as they drifted by, many of the languages completely foreign to him. 

Kanan thought back to his time on Coruscant. Sleheyron felt as though someone had taken the underbelly of Coruscant and turned it into a whole planet, the grime and grit amplified a hundred fold. 

“I don’t like it here,” Hera muttered. 

Kanan shrugged. “We’ve been in worse places.”

“We didn’t have Thrawn chasing us then though. We don’t have a ship, hell we don’t even know where our ship is, and I’m not convinced that our ride here won’t sell us out at the first sign of a reward. On top of that, we have, of all people, Agent fucking Kallus travelling with us. This is bad, and I don’t like it one bit.”

Hera had a point. They were in a dangerous situation, and a lot could go wrong. Kanan could feel Kallus nearby. He felt on edge, like he was waiting for something to happen. Kanan frowned. They had Sabine watching him, ready to shoot if he tried anything, but it was a risk to have him with them at all. Letting him go would be even riskier though. It was better that they at least know where he was. “Don’t worry about the Ghost. Chopper is still with it, so if anything, I feel bad for whoever took it. Chopper’ll give them hell.” 

“I know, but what if something happens to him?”

“He’ll be fine. You know how tough he is.” He gave Hera’s shoulder a reassuring squeeze. “We’ll figure out what to do about Kallus, then we’ll find the Ghost. It’ll be fine.”

Hera scoffed. “I wish I had your optimism.”

Kanan laughed. “Are we calling it optimism now? I believe you’ve called it “denial” previously.”

“Yeah, well, I could use a little denial right now. Anything to get us out of this situation.”

XXX

The bar was dim and crowded, but it was cheap, which was all that really mattered. As far has Kallus could tell, the crew hadn’t eaten in at least a day and a half, so cheap food was the main reason they were there. He just sat there with a cup of caf. It was tempting to get something stronger to drink, but he knew that was a bad idea. 

“You have a lot to explain.”

Kallus laughed quietly. “That’s rather vague. What do you want to know?”

Ezra crossed his arms. “Well, for starters, where the hell have you been for the past four years?”

“Do you want the short version or the long version?”

“I want the full version.”

“Okay,” Kallus sighed, trying to figure out where to start. He’d known this was coming, but so much had happened. “About four and a half years ago, I began feeding the Rebellion information. I believe my code name was Fulcrum. I sent information for around six months, but I wasn’t careful enough. Thrawn figured out who I was and I was arrested. I spent nine months or so in a prison camp before I escaped. That would’ve been just over three years ago, and I’ve been on the run ever since.” He shrugged and took a drink. “That’s the long and short of it.”

Everyone was silent. Finally Hera spoke. “You were Fulcrum?” Kallus nodded. “You expect us to believe that?”

“Of course not.” Kallus leaned back in his hair. “I can tell you, though, that I sent a total of 13 transmissions, most of which dealt with troop movements and the shipment of weapons. I’ve admittedly never been sure if you even received the last one, though. I was arrested shortly after, and always wondered if Thrawn intercepted that one.”

Hera watched him carefully. “You could’ve arrested the real Fulcrum and gotten that information from them.”

“I suppose I could’ve, yeah.”

The table fell quiet for a moment. Kanan frowned. “That’s it? You’re not going to try and convince us?”

Kallus shrugged. “Wasn’t planning on it, no. I mean, what am I going to say? It was four years ago, I don’t remember much more than what I just told you. And I doubt anything I say is going to convince you. You have no reason to believe me. Hell, I probably wouldn’t believe me.”

“Thrawn said that he never believed you’d died. What did he mean by that?”

Kallus glanced up at Sabine. “I faked my death twice to try and keep the Empire off my trail. First time didn’t stick, but the second one worked. Well, at least until yesterday. I suppose that one’s blown out of the water now too.”

Hera raised an eyebrow. “Faking your death seems a little extreme.”

“Maybe, but it was effective. The Empire’s not going to waste resources chasing someone they think is dead, and it was a hell of a lot easier once I didn’t have to constantly look over my shoulder for agents.”

“Why did you send information under a new name?” 

Kallus laughed. “Are you kidding? It’s not like I could exactly start using my real name. Look how well that’s working out for me right now. And besides, I was on the run. I needed to stay as inconspicuous as possible.”

“Yeah, but why a completely new name?” Zeb crossed his arms. “Why not continue working as Fulcrum?”

“It was too dangerous of a name to use. Thrawn knew that had been my code name, so using it could’ve drawn attention to me. It was easier to simply use an entirely new name.” 

Kanan looked over at him. “How do we even know you are Zeb’s informant? You could’ve gotten information of them the same way you could’ve gotten it on Fulcrum.”

“I first contacted Zeb about three years ago. He was my only contact within the rebellion, and my messages were always signed “Lx”. Most of my communication was virtual, but I did meet with Zeb in person on several occasions, always on Outer Rim planets, usually to give him large data files that would’ve been dangerous to transfer electronically. I never spoke, however, and my face was always covered to hide my identity. Zeb tried to convince me to join the rebels several times and tried to get me to reveal who I was, but I wouldn’t. I also wouldn’t give a reason for my refusal.” He paused, glancing over at Zeb. “He called me Lex because of how I signed my messages.”

The crew looked at each other for a moment before stepping back from the table. Hera shot Kallus a look. “We need a moment. Try anything, and we’ll shoot.”

Kallus nodded and took another drink. He knew they didn’t believe him, though he certainly didn’t blame them. Last thing they’d known, he was an ISB agent hell bent on arresting them and taking down the rebellion. They weren’t going believe what had happened easily. He’d do what he could to convince them though. If they were going to get the Ghost back and get out of here before Thrawn caught up with them, he needed them to believe him, and Kallus would do anything to keep from being Thrawn’s prisoner again.

XXX

“ _Kallus_ as Fulcrum? I find that pretty hard to believe.”

“He was able to give accurate information regarding the information Fulcrum sent us though,” Sabine pointed out. “And I feel like he’d be a lot more interested in trying to convince us if he was lying.”

Ezra crossed his arms. “I still don’t like it. I mean, it’s Kallus. He tried to kill us for like two years.”

“It’s been over fours years since we ran into him though. A lot can happen during four years.” Zeb paused. “And I really do think he’s my informant. He’s Lex. The information he provided was accurate and specific, and at least some of it doesn’t seem like the sort of information you’d go after if you were trying to get information out of someone.”

“Well, we need to figure out what we’re going to do with him, and soon. We don’t know how long it’s going to take us to find the Ghost or what condition she’s going to be in when we find her, and we can’t just let him go.”

Hera nodded. “Kanan is right. Unfortunately we’re a little limited in what we can do until we have the Ghost back. I don’t like it, but we’re going to have to trust him at least somewhat, and, depending on what shape the Ghost is in when we find her, we may need his help to get her up and running before Thrawn catches up.” Ezra started to protest, but Hera held up a hand. “Listen, I don’t like it either. I want one of us watching him at all times, always armed. We’ll take shifts during the night so that there’s always at least one person awake and alert at all times. It’s not ideal, but it’s the best we can do right now. All agreed?” Everyone nodded reluctantly. “Okay.”

They walked back over to the table, where Kallus was sitting quietly. He looked up at them but didn’t say anything.

Hera sat down. “We don’t trust you, and we’re far from convinced that you’re telling us the truth. Unfortunately there’s not a lot we can do about that right now.”

“Let me guess. Be quiet and don’t try anything, or else you’ll shoot? Works for me.” Kallus finished his drink. “You need to find a place for the night. I’d avoid the area around the docks if I were you. Things are usually more expensive, and there’s a higher chance you’ll run into someone who recognizes you.

Hera stared at him, not entirely sure how to respond. “Um, yeah. We...we’re working on that.” She glanced over at Zeb. She’d expected at least somewhat more of a reaction from Kallus, but he seemed to be expecting their decision and appeared indifferent to it. Zeb shrugged. He didn’t seem to know anything more than the rest of them.

XXX

The room was cold and cramped. Sabine sat at the small table with Hera. They were trying to reconfigure one of the coms so that it would pick up long range signals. If they could get it to work, there was the chance they could contact Chopper, or at least get a reading on the Ghost and figure out where it was. It was a long shot, but they didn’t have any better ideas at the moment.

They were all tense. Sleheyron was Hutt controlled and while it wasn’t Empire friendly, it wasn’t exactly rebel friendly either. Hutt planets were home to a whole host of disreputable characters, many of whom had loose lips and even looser moral codes. Not to mention the fact that Thrawn was likely already on their trail. The sooner they found the Ghost, the better. 

Kallus seemed strangely relaxed though. Sabine looked over at him suspiciously. He had been oddly helpful during the whole ordeal, helping them escape from the fuel depot, getting them a ride off Tatooine, giving them advice on where to find a place to stay on Sleheyron. And now he sat on the floor of the small room, leaning against the wall, seemingly unworried by the fact that Ezra had a blaster loosely pointed at him, ready to shoot if he tried anything. 

“Ah!” Sabine looked back at the table, where Hera was grinning. “I think I might have something.”

Kanan looked over. “You found the Ghost?”

Hera shook her head. “No I don’t think so, but I am picking up a signal that Chopper uses a lot. It could be a lot of things, but it’s worth checking out.” She looked closely at the small screen in front of her. “It’s actually not that far from here. Only a few miles it looks like.”

“Probably in the junk district then. We’re not that far from that part of the city.”

Hera glanced over at Kallus with distrust. “You seem to know a lot about this planet.”

Kallus shrugged. “I do mainly dock work now, and there’s a lot of work here.”

“Right…” Hera stood up. “Zeb, come with me. We’re going to see if we can find whatever the source of the signal is. The rest of you stay here. We’ll be back soon.”

Zeb got up and followed Hera out. Sabine turned back to Kallus and raised an eyebrow. “Dock work? Really? You expect us to believe that?”

“Of course not. I could tell you your own name and you’d still check with another person to verify.” He leaned his head back against the wall and closed his eyes.

Ezra frowned. “Well we have good reason not to trust you.”

“I never said you didn’t.”

“You seem very relaxed for someone who’s essentially a prisoner right now.” Kanan eyed him doubtfully.

“At best, you eventually start to believe me. At worst, you shoot me. I have a limited say in the matter, so why worry about it?”

“Because you could die?”

Kallus frowned and looked over. “You say that like it’s a bad thing.”

Sabine stared at him. “Well, I mean, it usually is.”

Kallus shrugged and closed his eyes again. “Death wouldn’t even be in the top ten worst things that have happened to me this week. I’d actually be pretty fine with it.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> in celebration of the cannon Kalluzeb ending :)
> 
> thank you all so much for all of your comments!! it makes me so happy that other people are enjoying this as much as I am. I love hearing your guys' reactions!


	7. Chapter 7

Zeb followed Hera through the alleys and side streets as they tried to find the source of the signal Hera had picked up. The likelihood was that it was just a coincidence that the signal was one that Chopper and Hera used, but it was worth checking out anyways.

“It looks like we’re getting closer. The source should be somewhere close by.”

Zeb nodded. “That’s good. I know it’ll probably end up being nothing, but here’s hoping I suppose.”

“Yeah, here’s hoping.” Hera continued to watch the small screen closely. “So what’s you reading on Kallus so far?”

Zeb glanced over at her. “Too early to tell.”

“You seem pretty convinced that he was your informant.”

Zeb sighed. “Is this why you asked me to come with you?”

“You’re also handy in a fight in case we end up in a tight situation, but yeah, this was the main reason.” She looked over. “I trust your judgement, Zeb, but I don’t understand where it’s coming from. I want to understand why you think he’s Lex. You’re the only one of us who ever met them, so you’re the only one who can really shed light on that part of the situation.”

“Well, the information he gave about Lex was all accurate, and he included things that I don’t think someone who go after if they were getting information out of another person. Details like how I tried to get him to join the rebels several times but he always refused without giving a reason why, or that I called him Lex because of how he signed his messages.” He paused. “More than that, though...I don’t know, I mean I never saw Lex’s face, but he was always easy to recognize. He had this feeling of quiet cautiousness, like he was always scanning the room for danger and ready to make a run for it if he needed to. I know that sounds really vague, but it was such a specific feeling, and Kallus feels the same way, like he’s expecting something bad to happen and is prepared to bolt at a moment’s notice. I never got that sense from him when we ran into him as an agent, but that’s what I get from him now, and it’s the exact same sense I got from Lex.”

Hera nodded slowly. “Not going to lie, I still don’t really understand where you’re coming from, but you seem pretty sure.”

“You know, once I realized I probably knew who Lex was, I wracked my brain trying to figure out who they could be. I tried so hard to figure out where I might know them from, and I never once considered Kallus as a possibility.”

Hera laughed. “I don’t blame you. I never would’ve guessed him either.” She stopped, staring at the screen and then looking down the street. “According to this, the source of the signal is within fifty feet of us.”

Zeb looked around. “Any idea what it is we’re looking for?”

“Nope.”

“Great.” They walked slowly down the street, looking around carefully. “Are we getting closer?”

“It looks like it, yeah.”

Zeb paused, a pit of dread in his stomach. “What about a droid parts shop?”

“No, no, please, no…” Hera hurried across the street, looking panicked. Zeb followed quickly.

The shop was cramped and dimly lit, with mechanical parts strewn about haphazardly. A lizard-like man watched them suspiciously from behind a small counter. “You two need something?”

Hera looked around, clearly looking for any sign, good or bad, of Chopper. “Yes, I-I’m tracking a signal that I think is from my astromech droid. I thought it might be coming from in here.”

The man frowned. “You wouldn’t happen to be a Captain Syndulla, would you?”

Hera’s face lit up with hope. “I am.”

“Guy came in just yesterday with an ill-tempered astromech droid. Said he was taking a ship to be scrapped, wanted to see if I’d buy the droid. I told him no way, that thing was a pile of junk, with an attitude to fit it. Told him nobody’s gonna buy that droid, not for parts or service.” He glanced up at Hera. “No offence or nothin’.”

“None taken. Do you know what happened to the droid?”

“Came up to me all suspicious like and gave me some sort of transponder. Said the fella he was with had stolen his ship and to give this to a Captain Syndulla if she showed up. Thought he was full of shit and I was just going to sell the thing, but turns out he was tellin’ the truth. At least part of it. Guy saw the droid was talkin’ to me and tried to hurry out, but the droid saw and went after him.” He rummaged around through the clutter on the counter for a minute, looking for something. “Ah! Here it is.” He held up a small transponder.

“Thank you, I’m glad you didn’t sell it before we got here.”

Hera reached for the device, but the man pulled his hand back. “Now, it’s nice to know that droid was tellin’ some truth, but I’m not givin’ this away for free. Bad business.”

“Okay,” Hera sighed. “How much are you asking?”

“Sixty credits.”

“What?!” Zeb couldn’t believe it. “That’s ridiculous! We’re not…”

“We can’t do sixty, but I’ll do fifty.”

Zeb looked at Hera incredulously. They barely had any money as it was, and they were almost certainly going to have to get at least one more ride off planet before they found the Ghost.

The man considered her for a moment before nodding. “I’ll take that.”

Hera handed him the credits and took the transponder before walking quickly out of the shop. Zeb followed her, not believing what had just happened. “Hera, there was no way we could afford to pay fifty credits for that thing.”

“It’s our only lead on where Chopper and the Ghost are. We can get more money if we need to, but it’s going to be be a lot harder to get information.” She let out a sigh of relief. “I’m just glad it’s a transponder we found and not a dismantled Chopper.”

XXX

The floor of the room was hard, but Kallus didn’t really mind. He’d slept on worse. Not that he figured he was going to sleep much anyways. His sleeping schedule by this point was erratic at best and practically nonexistent at worst, so he was used to running on very little sleep. The little sleep he’d gotten on the ride to Sleheyron was enough to last him for probably at least another day.

He also knew that if he fell asleep he ran the risk of waking up from a nightmare. He didn’t have nearly as many as he used to, but having to face Thrawn had shaken him up and he’d been woken by a nightmare on the ship, so it would probably happen again. He knew he’d have to explain everything that had happened eventually, including his time as a prisoner, but that was a conversation he’d rather have later.

Ezra shifted restlessly a couple of feet away. The crew was taking shifts to watch Kallus and make sure he didn’t try to escape, and it was Ezra’s shift currently. By his count, Ezra probably had about an hour left before someone else took over. 

The next few days were going to be long. The signal Hera had picked up had in fact apparently been a transponder left by Chopper, so they knew he was at least still with the ship and hadn’t been sold for scrap, but they were no closer to figuring out where the ship actually was. Plus it had cost fifty credits to actually get the transponder, so they were low on money. Kallus had very little to his name, so he wouldn’t be much help on that front. He did, however, know how to get money in places like this, and could probably get them off planet relatively easily when they figured out where they were going.

Kallus sighed and sat up, trying not to laugh when he heard Ezra jump slightly, clearly startled. “Don’t freak out, just sitting up.” He leaned back against the wall and closed his eyes. Ezra was still shifting nervously a few feet away. Kallus found it both odd and amusing how cautiously the crew regarded him. Objectively he knew that of course they’d consider him a threat, he’s spent about two years trying to kill them, but he was so used to being inconspicuous by this point, nothing more than a transient dock worker, that he almost found their distrust almost funny. He supposed he should get used to it. It was probably just going to get worse, especially once they finally made it back to the rebel base. 

XXX

_Kallus sat in the corner of the small room, knees drawn up to his chest, trying to conserve as much heat as possible. These rooms had almost no insulation, so they were freezing. The guards used them as punishment, along with denying food, when a prisoner didn’t meet the daily labour quota. Kallus rubbed his arms, trying to get some feeling back into them, but he knew it was no use. He was going to be stuck in here until morning, there was no way he was going to be able to keep feeling in his limbs._

_It was his third night in a row being here. The combination of no food, hours of dangerously low temperatures, and being tortured by Thrawn a few days prior meant that it was near impossible to meet the quota. He simply didn’t have the strength. He had to figure something out though, and soon, or he’d likely end up starving to death._

XXX

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> nothing motivates you to write fic quite like knowing you should be studying for midterms. oh well ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯ it's not a super long update, but I have another midterm next week, so I'm hoping I'll end up getting the next chapter written by then. yay procrastination?


	8. Chapter 8

Ezra sighed and leaned against the wall. They’d spent the past three days looking for any sign of Chopper or the Ghost on Sleheyron besides the transponder Hera and Zeb had found, but they’d come up empty. Hera and Sabine had been working on the transponder, trying to rig it so that they could contact Chopper. Hera said it would probably work eventually, but it was taking longer than any of them would’ve liked. It was only a matter of time before Thrawn found their trail again, and all of them wanted to be long gone by the time that happened.

He looked over at Kallus, who was sitting against the wall across the room, expression blank. The crew had reluctantly accepted his help in looking for signs of Chopper or the Ghost, and he’d turned out to be surprisingly helpful. He was apparently quite familiar with Sleheyron. When asked, he’d simply shrugged and said there was a lot of work here. Ezra didn’t believe him, but he had to admit that Kallus certainly knew more about the planet, or at least the area they were in, than any of the rest of them.

Kanan walked in, closing the door quietly behind him. “Bad news. An Imperial freighter came into the system this morning. Can’t say for sure that it’s connected to us, but I don’t like it.”

“Shit.” Hera sat up. “We should get off planet.”

“Yeah, except we have no money, and getting off planet isn’t going to be cheap.” Zeb glanced over at Hera. “That transponder was pretty expensive.”

“It was worth it though. It’s the only lead we have.”

Sabine thought for a moment. “We might be able to get to Nar Shaddaa from here pretty easily. A lot of trade routes go there from this area.”

“Smugglers are your best bet. With an Imperial freighter in the area, they’ll be wanting to get out as much as we do.”

Ezra looked over at Kallus. “Doesn’t solve the fact that we don’t have money though.”

Kallus shrugged. “Offer to work the route. If you find someone with illegal enough cargo, they’ll probably hire you as security.”

Hera sighed. “Unfortunately that’s probably our best bet. Ezra, Zeb, why don’t you guys head to the docks, see if you can find a ride.” Ezra nodded and headed towards the door, but stopped when Kallus stood up too. Hera frowned. “Sit down. You’re staying here.”

“When was the last time any of you negotiated a ride from an anxious and probably violent smuggler?” Kallus paused for a moment. “Exactly. No offense, but you’re all a bit fucking useless right now. I can get us a ride way quicker. Besides,” he pulled on his coat. “Ezra and Zeb will be there to shoot me immediately if I try anything.” He clapped Ezra on the shoulder lightly as he walked out of the room. Hera sighed and motioned for Ezra and Zeb to follow him. 

Ezra watched Kallus closely as they walked through the streets. He was still suspicious of how helpful Kallus was being, and the appearance of the freighter just made him more nervous. Kanan was right, they couldn’t be sure it had anything to do with them, but with Thrawn on their tails they didn’t want to take any chances. 

Kallus seemed to know where he was going, and before long they were at a dingy bar by the docks. The bar seemed to have a nervous energy in the air. Ezra could feel that people were on edge; the freighter showing up seemed to have taken everyone by surprise. 

Zeb looked around. “Wouldn’t it be better if we actually went to the docks?”

Kallus shook his head. “Docks are good if you’re looking for on-planet work, but if you need a ride off, the bars by the docks are a better bet.”

“You seem to know a lot about this.”

Kallus shrugged and headed into the crowd. “Been doing it for over three years by this point.”

It didn’t take long for them to find several smugglers who were willing to hire a couple of people for security, but no one seemed to want to take 6 people. Kallus did most of the talking, bargaining with captains in several dialects. Ezra had to admit he was impressed. If Kallus was undercover as an agent, he’d certainly researched the part. 

It took a couple of hours, but Kallus finally seemed to reach some sort of agreement with a captain. “Okay, I think we have a ride to Nar Shaddaa. Four of us will work security, the other two will work maintenance and mechanics. Ship leaves at dusk, so we have a couple of hours.”

“What’s the cargo?”

“Didn’t ask. You probably shouldn’t either. Given his urgency though, I’m guessing either drugs or high grade weapons.”

Ezra rolled his eyes. “Glad to see you developed a strong moral code when you supposedly betrayed the Empire.”

“Oh I’m just as much of an immoral bastard as I always was, now I’m just an immoral bastard who happens to be on your side.”

Zeb sighed. “At least you’re honest about it I guess.”

XXX

Hera looked over at Kallus, who was leaning against the wall, watching the screen in front of him closely. Zeb, Ezra, Sabine, and Kanan were working as security for the duration of the route, so she and Kallus had ended up with mechanical work. The ship wasn’t in great condition, so they’d basically been hired to make sure it didn’t break down in the middle of the run. Hera had been surprised Kallus hadn’t taken one of the security positions, but he’d just shrugged and said he’d assumed they’d rather he not have a weapon. “How are things looking over there?”

“Not great, but it should hold for at least an hour or two. How’s the hyperdrive doing?”

“It’ll definitely need to be replaced once we get to Nar Shaddaa, but it should at least manage to get us there.” Kallus nodded and leaned his head back against the wall, closing his eyes. Hera glanced over at him. “You look tired.”

He shrugged. “I’m fine, it’s just been a long couple of days.”

“I don’t think I’ve actually seen you sleep since the ride off Tatooine. You always seem to be awake whenever I’m on watch at night.” 

“I don’t really sleep much anymore.”

“Have you slept at all?”

“Yeah, an hour or two each night. I’m fine”

Hera looked up, surprised. “That’s it?”

“Yeah, like I said, I don’t sleep much.” He frowned. “Engine two is heating up a bit, we should probably keep an eye on that.”

Hera looked at the readout on the screen in front of her. He was right. It wasn’t to a dangerous level yet, but it was heating up faster than the other three and it could become a problem if they didn’t keep an eye on it. “Good catch. You’re actually not half bad at mechanical work.”

Kallus laughed. “I’ve been doing this for over three years now, I’d hope I’ve picked up at least a few things.”

“I find it hard to believe that _you_ , of all people, have spent the last three years doing mechanical and dock work.”

“Things change.” He shrugged. “Didn’t exactly have a lot of options after I escaped. Working smugglers’ routes and Outer Rim docks pays somewhat decently, is usually anonymous, and keeps me on the move, which makes me harder to track. It’s a pain in the ass, but it works.”

Hera watched Kallus out of the corner of her eye. He was being surprisingly open, but didn’t seem particularly keen to continue the conversation. “You haven’t really said much about the time you’ve supposedly spent on the run.”

“Not really a lot to tell you, honestly. Nothing particularly interesting or exciting’s happened. I’ve stayed almost exclusively in the Outer Rim, following leads, tracking information, and just generally trying to avoid being captured.”

“By us or the Empire?”

“Both.”

“Most people who’d betrayed the Empire and escaped from prison would’ve gone to the rebels as soon as they escaped.”

“Yeah, and then I would’ve gone directly back into prison.” Kallus gave a sarcastic laugh. “I’m not an idiot, Hera, I know that I’ll be arrested as soon as we reach the rebel base. The rebellion will never trust me, and for good reason considering the things I’ve done. I knew I could never reveal my identity to the rebellion and I wasn’t going back into Imperial custody, so going on the run was my only option. Either that or kill myself, and I can at least be useful if I’m alive.”

Hera nodded, not sure what to say. Kallus’ answer was unexpectedly blunt. He clearly had no illusions regarding his standing with the rebellion or what it would mean for him if they managed to get him back to base successfully. “You don’t seem that bothered by the prospect of it now.”

“Not like there’s much I can do about it. Bit inevitable by this point really. And besides, I have the sneaking suspicion that being a rebel prisoner will be a hell of a lot less unpleasant than being an Imperial prisoner. Honestly, if it isn’t, I won’t even be mad. I’ll just be impressed.” He paused, listening to something. “I’m not liking the sound the hydraulics are making. I’m going to go check on them.”

Hera nodded. “I’ll be here. Let me know if something needs to be fixed.” Kallus nodded and headed towards the engine compartment. Hera watched him as he left. He was an…odd conversation partner, nothing like how he’d used to be. She’d expected him to be righteous and dogmatic like he’d always been previously, but he just seemed subdued now. He answered any question he was asked, but other than that he spoke surprisingly little. When he did speak it was usually matter of fact and to the point. It was a surprising change, and Hera had to admit, she wasn’t quite sure what to make of it.

XXX

Kallus hated working routes like this. It was a two day haul to Nar Shaddaa, and he knew he’d spend the entire time having to do everything he could to keep the piece of shit ship they were on in the air. The captain had clearly been on Sleheyron for repairs but got nervous when the Imperial freighter showed up and decided to try and make the jump without getting things fixed. Kallus had no doubt they’d get there, but it was going to take a lot of careful monitoring on his part.

At least he wasn’t working the mechanics alone. After years of working on the Ghost, Hera was probably a much better mechanic than he was, and it was good to have a second pair of eyes watching over things. It even meant that he might be able to get a little sleep before they arrived.

Kallus rubbed his eyes, trying to focus. He definitely needed sleep. Or at least a couple of cups of caf. He’d only been sleeping an hour or two a night for the past few days and, used to sleep deprivation or no, he was reaching his limit. He might be able to make it to Nar Shaddaa, but he was going to crash soon.

“Damn, you really do look like shit.”

He looked up to find Hera watching him with what almost looked like concern. “Just a bit tired, that’s all. I’m fine.”

“Listen, go get a little sleep. You’re no use here if you’re barely staying awake, and there should be someone in the room to keep an eye on you and make sure you don’t try anything. I’ll get you if something comes up.” 

He nodded and stood up. “Thanks.” 

Zeb was in the room they’d all been given when he got there. He looked up as Kallus walked in. “What are you doing here?”

“I’m going to try and get a little sleep before one of the engines fails or something else goes to shit.”

“You make me really confident about our chances of getting to Nar Shaddaa in one piece.” 

Kallus laughed. “Welcome to the joy of Outer Rim smuggling ships. Gambling with your life never involved so much work.” He laid down on the floor. “Just wake me up whenever you leave to guard the cargo again.”

“That’ll only be an hour or so from now. You sure that’ll be enough sleep for you?”

“Yeah, I’ll be fine.”

XXX

_Kallus shivered against the wind. He was freezing. All he wanted was something warm to eat and a couple hours of sleep, but he knew neither of those things were going to happen any time soon. He was completely broke and knew that there was an agent on his trail, so he needed to get off planet soon. That meant working as many dock shifts back to back as he could until he had enough credits to get off planet and land on his feet wherever he ended up._

_He was so tired though. It’d been over two days since he’d slept last, and he wasn’t sure how much longer he could go, at least not without a little help. Kallus generally avoided using stims to stay awake as much as possible, but he couldn’t afford to sleep right now. Stims were cheap in places like this, and he could probably get enough to keep him up for at least another day or so without having to pay that much._

_Kallus sighed and headed towards one of the bars near the docks. He knew this was a bad idea, but bad ideas seemed to be what usually got him off planet._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> officially finished my first year of grad school, so here's a celebratory update!! because nothing says celebration like torturing your favourite characters


	9. Chapter 9

Thrawn watched the security video again. It was easy to pick the Lasat and the Twi’lek out of the crowd on the street. The crew of the Ghost had clearly been on Sleheyron as recently as a couple of days ago, but they were nowhere to be found now. 

They shouldn’t have even been able to escape the fuel depot on Tatooine in the first place. The general who’d let them out claimed to have been threatened by Kallus which may very well have been true, but it didn’t change anything. He’d been dealt with as was appropriate. 

Thrawn sighed. The Ghost crew was the single thorn he couldn’t seem to fully remove from his side, and Agent Kallus’ reappearance had only made things worse. The crew, though notoriously difficult to catch, often became sloppy and could be drawn into traps. They were nothing more than backwater terrorists in the end. Kallus was different though. He was Imperially trained and was very good at what he did, good enough that he’d managed to convince most of the ISB high command that he was dead for over a year.

Thrawn also knew that Kallus had an extensive network of informants. He’d built it up as an agent and had likely continued to maintain it after going on the run. With the Empire back on his trail, it was possible that Kallus would use this network to retaliate. He needed the crew of the Ghost captured and Kallus dead as soon as possible.

XXX

Nar Shaddaa felt about as close to a home as Kallus had anymore. He spent most of his time traveling between backwater crime havens, but many smuggler routes ultimately ended up at Nar Shaddaa so Kallus usually ended up here at least a couple of times per year. The urban sprawl that covered the moon felt familiar, even if the moon itself was quite dangerous. Despite the circumstances, it was nice to be back.

They’d managed to finish the route without any major issues, but now they were stuck on a new planet with almost no credits. The captain had failed to mention that no food would be provided during the route, so the first thing they needed was something to eat. The bar they’d found was dark and filthy, but it was all they could afford. Kallus was hungry, but he’d just gotten something to drink. It was cheaper than actually getting food, and he knew that he could probably go longer without eating than the rest of the crew.

Zeb sat down and sighed. “Well, we managed to get off Sleheyron, but we’re broke and no closer to finding Chopper or the Ghost.”

“I don’t know about finding the Ghost, but it won’t be hard to get credits here. Dock foremen are always looking for workers.”

Ezra looked over at Kallus, unconvinced. “Seems pretty convenient, you knowing a lot about both the planets we’ve ended up on. You’re two for two, what’re the odds?”

“They’re common stops on Outer Rim smuggling runs, especially Nar Shaddaa.” Kallus shrugged and took a drink, grimacing slightly at how bitter the alcohol was. “Just trying to be helpful.”

“Yeah, you’ve been suspiciously helpful this entire time.” Ezra crossed his arms. “Pretty drastic shift from the last time we ran into you.”

“In my defense, that was what, four years ago? A lot can happen in four years.”

Hera raised an eyebrow. “Like what?”

“Like getting arrested and going to prison. Say what you want, but I generally consider that a pretty major life change.” Kallus frowned. “I feel like we’ve already had this conversation at least a time or two.”

“We still have a lot of questions.”

Kallus shrugged again. “Then ask them.”

“Okay, let’s start with the fuel depot.” Hera leaned back in her chair. “You got that general to let us go. How?”

“When I was an agent I specialized in blackmail and information gathering. I happen to have information on the general, and he knows I have it. He also knows that if I were to release it, his career in the military would be over. I threatened to release it, so he let us go.”

Kanan frowned. “What sort of information?”

“Er...personal information.”

“What sort of information?” Hera repeated.

Kallus paused, not entirely sure how to proceed. “Well, several years before I was arrested, the general and I were involved in a rather…compromising situation.” He took another drink, hoping they's move onto a different topic.

Hera crossed her arms. “And what exactly do you mean by that?”

Kallus sighed. It was no use. “I mean I slept with him.”

The entire table went silent. Hera just stared at him for a minute. “I’m sorry, what?”

“I slept with him.” Kallus was suddenly rather glad he’d gotten something alcoholic, and took a drink. “I was trying to be subtle, but clearly you weren’t getting it.”

“What do you mean, you slept with him?!”

Kallus looked up, sighing. “What do you need, Zeb, a diagram? It’s not that complicated.” He shrugged. “My methods may be…unorthodox, but it’s a very effective way to get information from people.”

Kanan looked over at him. “You make it sound like you did this a lot.”

“Like I said, I specialized in information gathering. When you find a method that works, you don’t just use it once.”

“Wait, hold on.” Everyone looked over at Sabine, who had put her drink down and was staring at Kallus with an incredulous look. “Oh my god. You didn’t. You fucking didn’t.”

Kallus looked at her, confused. “Didn’t what?”

“‘It leaves a bit of a bad taste in my mouth’?” Sabine imitated Kallus. “Seriously?”

“Oh right. That.”

Hera’s eyes widened. “Please tell me that doesn’t mean what I think it means.”

Kallus gave a small grin. “It means _exactly_ what you think it means.”

Ezra frowned. “Wait, I don’t get it. What does it mean?”

Kallus laughed. “Oh Bridger, you’re so innocent.”

Sabine was smiling and clearly trying not to laugh. “It means that when getting us the ride off Tatooine, Kallus was on his knees but he certainly wasn’t begging.” Ezra stared at her for a moment longer before understanding dawned on his face, along with a look of horror.

Hera closed her eyes and rubbed the bridge of her nose. “Sabine, I’m going to pretend I didn’t just hear you say that.”

“What? Why?” Sabine turned to Kallus. “I’m right, aren’t I?”

Kallus shrugged. “Well, one of us was begging, it just wasn’t me.”

Kanan nearly choked on his tea. “What the _hell_ Kallus?”

“Hey, like I said, I was trying to be subtle, but apparently that wasn’t working. And it’s Sabine who brought up what happened at the cantina.”

Sabine watched Kallus with a grin. “Not gonna lie, I never would’ve pegged you as gay.” 

“Of course you wouldn’t. If you had, I wouldn’t have been an ISB agent.” Kallus sat back in his chair. “It’s like I told you. If Imperial command had found out that the general had slept with another man, he would’ve been dishonorably discharged at best, and depending on who found out, he could’ve even been court martialed. I would’ve had the exact same consequences had I been outed.” 

Hera frowned. “Wait, Sabine, you were with Kallus the entire time at the cantina. How did you not know what happened?”

“Yeah, about that…” Sabine gave Hera an apologetic look. “I actually lost him for a couple minutes. He told me to give him three minutes then ducked into a back room and the door locked behind him. I figured it’d be better if I didn’t cause a scene, so I just waited by the door.” 

Hera sighed. “Well, you’re damn lucky it turned out in our favour.”

“I know, it won’t happen again.”

Kallus finished his drink. “In her defense, I probably wouldn’t have gotten us the ride if she’d followed me in. There’s no way I would’ve given a blow job with her in the room.”

“Well that’s good.” Kanan frowned. “I think.”

XXX

The room was small and cramped, but it worked. It was probably only set up to sleep one or two people. With three of them on the floor, one on the bed, and one on watch though, they’d managed to fit all six of them in there. And a room made for one person was a hell of a lot cheaper than a room made for six.

Hera watched Kallus curiously. He was laying on the floor with his back to her, but she couldn’t be sure he was asleep. He had always been awake and sitting up whenever she’s taken her shift during the night previously, but she thought he was maybe actually asleep this time. 

He’d continued to answer their questions at the bar earlier, but his revelation of how he’d gotten the general to let them go and the depot and how he’d gotten them off Tatooine had dominated most the conversation. As usual, Kallus had volunteered relatively little information on his own, but had answered all of the questions they’d asked him. Hera was still trying to make sense of his answers.

If it was all a cover, it had to be the strangest cover she’d ever heard. If he was going the blackmail angle, she would’ve expected something more along the lines of “I caught him misusing funds but didn’t report him” or something similar, not “I slept with him and could get him court martialed if I wanted to”. She admittedly would’ve expected a lot of things before the answer he actually gave. 

Though not technically illegal, Hera knew the Empire had a very poor views on being gay at the best of times, and the military was even worse. Sabine has even talked about it a few times, and she hadn’t even been in the military that long, so it was very unlikely that the ISB would willingly use a cover story like this. Did that mean he was telling the truth then? Doing so would be extremely risky if he really was still an agent. There would be the quite real chance that he would be outed in the process, which, as he’d said, would end very poorly for him. 

She sighed. They could figure it out once they got back to the rebel base. Their first priority needed to be finding Chopper and the Ghost. She and Sabine could get back to working on the transponder tomorrow and hopefully get it to where they could contact Chopper. In the meantime, Zeb, Ezra, and Kanan could look around the docks, both to see if they could find the Ghost and to see if they could find any quick jobs to earn a few credits. They were dangerously close to completely broke. They’d just have to figure out what to do with Kallus as they went.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> two updates in two days??? it must be a summer miracle! (I was so excited to finally be able to write the scene)


	10. Chapter 10

Zeb sat down on some empty crates, gratefully accepting some water from Kallus. Working docks shifts was hard, way harder than Zeb had anticipated. They needed the credits though. They had enough credits to keep renting the room they were in for that night, but after that they’d be broke, and they still had no new leads on where the Ghost or Chopper were. Kanan was checking around, seeing if he could find any word about either of them, but he hadn’t had any luck. Hera and Sabine were making headway on the transmitter, but Hera figured it would take at least a couple more days before they’d be able to contact Chopper and they simply didn’t have the credits for that. 

Kallus had laughed when they’d initially refused his help while looking for jobs, pointing out that they had no idea what jobs to look for, what would pay the best, or how to get the job if they managed to find it. Zeb had thought he and Ezra would be fine, but after hours without luck they’d reluctantly accepted Kallus’ help. He’d gotten them a job in less than 30 minutes.

It’d been almost 8 hours since then by Zeb’s count. Kallus hasn’t been lying when he’d said dock foremen were always looking for workers. Once they’d managed to get work at the dock, there always seemed to be a new job as soon as they finished the old one. Ezra looked close to passing out and even Zeb figured he’d reach his limit sometime soon. Kallus seemed to be doing fine though.

Zeb looked over and watched him for a minute. He’d gone back to loading crates, barely taking a break at all between jobs, and Zeb got the sense that whatever breaks he did take were more for his and Ezra’s sake than because he actually needed them. He had to admit, he was impressed. Dock work was even more strenuous than Zeb had anticipated, and Kallus seemed to have absolutely no issue with it.

Kallus noticed Zeb watching him and motioned for him and Ezra to come over. Zeb walked over, confused. “The foremen don’t like it when you take long breaks. They can kick you off a job if they think you’re taking too many, and one of them was eyeing you.”

Zeb nodded. “Thanks for the heads up.” He looked over and sure enough, one of the foremen was watching them closely. “You seem to know a lot about this.”

“I keep telling you, I’ve been doing this for over three years. I’m bound to have picked up a few things.”

Zeb nodded and started loading cargo again, occasionally glancing up at Kallus. Hera had told him to keep a close eye on Kallus and make sure he didn’t try anything. He’d been surprisingly helpful so far, but none of them really trusted it. Hera figured he was just waiting for the right time to strike, and while Zeb was less convinced than the others that Kallus was still working for the Empire, he was still suspicious. For all intents and purposes though, he seemed to have little to no interest is trying to escape or harming the crew. He’d been surprisingly passive since they’d run into him, seeming to more react to things and go with the flow than anything else. It was...well, it wasn’t exactly what Zeb would’ve expected from Kallus. He would’ve expected him to be righteous and dogmatic and combative, considering that’s how he’d always been before. Instead he was quiet, seemed to react to everything with a muted shrug, and was apparently willing to sell his body for a ride off planet.

Zeb was admittedly still having a bit of a hard time processing that last one. He could imagine Kallus as a lot of things, but gay? That seemed almost completely outside the realm of possibility. Even Kallus as a rebel informant seemed more likely than that, and Zeb was still trying to come to terms with that. Zeb knew the Empire’s views of homosexuality, and they weren’t good. Imperial propaganda tended to liken it to a disease, and it usually just got worse from there. So the idea of Kallus, who had believed in the Empire more than anything, being gay just felt...off. 

“Bridger.” Zeb frowned and looked up, surprised by Kallus’ voice. He’d put down the cargo box he’d been carrying and walked over to Ezra with what almost looked like concern on his face. “Bridger, you look like shit. Go collect your credits from the foreman and head back to the room.”

Ezra shook his head. “No, I’m fine. I can finish this shift.”

“Bullshit. You look like you’re going to pass out. Hera will undoubtedly murder me if anything happens to you, so you’re done for the day. Get your credits and head back.” He glanced over at Zeb. “Zeb and I will finish the shift, then we’ll be back.”

Ezra looked over at Zeb, who nodded. “Okay…” he seemed unsure, but walked over to the foreman, collecting his credits and heading back to the room where all of them were staying, glancing back over his shoulder at them periodically as he left.

Kallus went back to work and Zeb followed, but he kept a close eye Kallus. Though he agreed that Ezra was clearly at his limit and probably shouldn’t have continued working, he was still rather doubtful of Kallus’ motives. The rest of the shift went without incident though. Kallus worked silently beside Zeb, and Zeb quickly realized that the only reason Kallus had told Ezra they’d head back after this shift ended was because he could tell Zeb was getting tired. If he’d been on his own, Zeb had no doubt he would’ve been able to work another shift or two without issue. 

Ezra was already passed out by the time they got back to the room. Kallus dropped his credits on the table next to Hera and sat down on the floor, leaning back against the wall and closing his eyes. Zeb gave Hera his credits as well, and Hera looked at them in surprise. “You three actually made a fair amount. I’m impressed. This last us probably at least a week, maybe a bit more.”

Kallus shrugged. “The docks are good work if you know where to look and who to work for.”

“I’d assume so. You guys were gone for like 9 hours, and Ezra passed out as soon as he got back.”

Zeb looked over at the bed where Ezra was laying. “He alright? He was pretty beat when he left.”

Sabine laughed. “Yeah, he’s fine. He’ll probably be sore tomorrow though, so get ready for unending bitching.”

“Lovely.” Zeb sighed and sat down at the table where Hera and Sabine were working. “How’s it going with the transmitter?”

Hera shrugged. “It’s going. I’d say it’ll probably take another two or three days, but we’re getting there.” She frowned and looked around the table. “I need a part though.” She grabbed some of the credits and stood up. “Come on.”

“But I just sat down.”

“Which means you haven’t had a chance to get comfortable. Come on.”

Zeb sighed and stood up. The smog in the streets was so thick the he couldn’t see more than a block. “You know, if you wanted to talk to me you could’ve just said so.”

“Yeah, but I actually do need a part, and we finally have credits.” She looked over at Zeb. “How was Kallus? Did you have any issues?”

“No, he was fine. I have to admit, I was kinda impressed. He probably could’ve worked at least another shift or two if Ezra and I hadn’t been there. I mean, I knew he was strong, but still. That’s impressive.”

“I guess he’s just full of surprises, isn’t he?”

Zeb paused. “Do you believe what he was saying the other night?”

“What? About him being gay?” Zeb nodded, and Hera sighed. “I have no idea. It’d be a weird cover for him to use if he’s undercover, and if he’s telling the truth and also undercover he could get in serious trouble with Imperial command, maybe even court martialed. It would end his career. So it would make the most sense that he’s _not_ undercover, but it...it’s Kallus. There are so many other people I would’ve expected to defect before him.”

“I still stand by what I said, that Kallus is, or at least was, Lex, but I’m having a hard time swallowing this. I mean, I knew he had to have made some sort of deal to get us off Tatooine, but…I don’t know. I know the Empire’s view on homosexuality. How could someone who’s gay be an ardent supporter of the Empire for what, probably close to two decades, at least? He had so much faith in the Empire when he was an agent. I just don’t understand that.”

Hera shrugged. “I don’t know. I have been surprised at how helpful he’s been, with no apparent benefit on his part. All he’s done is make it more likely that we’ll successfully get him back to the rebel base as a prisoner.”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right.” He paused. “What do you think we should do with him?”

Hera sighed. “Exactly what we’ve been doing with him. I don’t trust him and I don’t like accepting his help, but that seems to be our best bet right now unfortunately. Hopefully we can just get him back to base and let command figure out what to do with him from there.”

The parts shop was small, so Zeb stayed outside while Hera went in to find the part she needed. He grimaced. The air on Nar Shaddaa tasted bad, like industry and pollution, and working in the docks earlier had just made it worse. He’d be glad when they left.

Hera stepped back out of the shop. “It’s so nice having some credits again.”

Zeb laughed. “Yeah, well enjoy it. They were a pain in the ass to get.”

“Really? That bad?”

“Let’s just say, workers rights aren’t really a thing in the Outer Rim.”

“Well, I have a feeling that won’t be the last shift you work before all this is done, so have fun with that.”

XXX

_Kallus stood in the back of the room, unnoticed. One of the generals had called him for a debriefing, but had been pulled aside for a meeting._

_There were six officers in the room of varying ranks as well as two internal affairs agents and three public relations agents. Almost a dozen soldiers had recently been dishonorably discharged due to “homosexual activities” according to internal affairs, and three were being court martialed. IA and command were clearly worried that this was a growing problem and were trying to figure out how to target it._

_Kallus watched the room coolly. Two captains, three generals, and a commandant. All discussing how they would approach the issue of rooting out homosexual recruits and removing them from the ranks._

_Captain Artrea liked to be tied up, while General Glhy’ss preferred to be the one doing the tying. General Refnar enjoyed inflicting pain during sex, which, while not the most pleasant experience on Kallus’ part, was workable and provided excellent blackmail. Captain Salrous enjoyed using drugs during sex, mainly stims and uppers. General Whyllis had a uniform kink. The commandant had only just recently transferred in, but Kallus had heard stories. He doubted it would take long to get something on him._

XXX

Kanan had agreed to take Ezra’s watch shift that night to give him some time to rest after working in the docks. He’d made a joke about how odd it was to have the blind guy on watch, but they all knew Kanan was perfectly capable of responding if Kallus tried anything. He may have been blind but he was far from helpless. Besides, Kallus hadn’t tried anything so far, and this didn’t seem like the most opportune time to start. 

As far as he could tell, Kallus was asleep, which, from what Hera had said, was rather surprising. From what any of them could tell, Kalus seemed to both sleep and eat surprisingly little. Even he seemed to have been tired out somewhat from working the docks though, and had been sleeping for several hours. 

Kanan avoided using the Force to probe other people’s minds, but he knew it was possible. He could get a relatively decent read on how people were feeling just by focusing on them. He knew it would just take slightly more pressure to allow him into most people’s minds. He could feel the wariness and caution in Kallus’ mind with just a cursory pass. Even asleep he seemed to be ready for something to happen. There was also a tiredness, both physical and emotional, like what you felt after a long day but amplified tenfold, and something else, not sadness, not quite, but close, something bigger, deeper, harder to reach…

He stopped. There was fear. He could feel fear in Kallus’ mind. It had already been there but it was growing now, taking over other emotions. Fear turned to terror, and terror into panic. Kanan pulled back but the fear didn’t seem to lessen at all. He frowned. Something was wrong. 

Kanan got up slowly and crouched next to where Kallus was laying. He knew there was the possibility that Kallus was setting him up, that he was going to try and attack or something, but Kanan doubted that. Kallus felt tense and panicked next to him, the emotions too raw to be faked without a high level of skill. 

Kallus sat up almost as soon as Kanan put his hand on his shoulder, his breathing shallow. Kanan pulled his hand back quickly, his other hand going to his lightsaber instinctively. “You okay? You were…it sounded like you were having a nightmare.”

“I-I’m fine.” Even with how quietly he was speaking Kanan could hear Kallus’ voice shaking slightly. He took a deep breath, seemingly trying to calm down.“Sorry if I startled you.”

“It’s fine. You sure you’re alright?”

“Yeah.”

Kallus didn’t sleep for the rest of Kanan’s shift.


	11. Chapter 11

Kallus stared blankly at the cup of caf in his hands. He and Zeb were working the docks again. Ezra had tried insisting on coming too, but Hera had just laughed and told him to get some more rest, he couldn’t even walk normally much less do another day of dock work. They had enough credits to make it through the next week if they were staying on Nar Shaddaa, but they didn’t have nearly enough to get off planet if they needed too, or to land on their feet wherever they ended up. It hadn’t taken long for the Empire to show up on Sleheyron, so they wanted to be prepared in case the same thing happened here.

He was exhausted. Working at the docks yesterday had made him tired, but he’d only slept for a few hours before he was woken up from a nightmare by Kanan. He grimaced just thinking about it. It hadn’t been a normal nightmare. Normal nightmares he was used to, he could calm himself down and go back to sleep. This one had been different though. It had been more of an intrusion than anything else. 

Part of Kallus doubted that it had been a nightmare at all. Kanan was a Jedi; using the Force to probe someone’s mind was well within his capabilities. He had taken Ezra’s watch shift and had been the one who woke Kallus up, and Kallus knew Kanan didn’t trust him, none of them did. And if Kanan had done it, he knew it wasn’t out of malice. Kallus knew he posed a threat to the crew. Had he been in Kanan’s place, he probably would’ve taken the opportunity to try and figure out his motivations too. People were vulnerable when they slept, both physically and psychologically; it was the perfect opportunity. 

That didn’t make it any easier though. Kallus was…intimately aware of what it felt like to have someone dig through your mind, and it terrified him. He’d spent the rest of the night laying on the floor silently, hyper aware of everything around him, terrified that he would feel it again, the gentle but insistent pressure of someone else prodding his mind. The fear he felt when Kanan woke him up barely subsided at all for the rest of the night

He sighed and finished his cup of caf. He didn’t have time for this. He needed to get back to work or one of the foremen would kick him off the job. He just hoped that he could work himself into enough of an exhaustion that he’d be so tired that nothing would wake him up that night. 

XXX

Nar Shaddaa felt cramped, even more so than Sleheyron had. Kanan kept his hand on Hera’s shoulder to make sure he didn’t get separated from her in the crowd. She’d needed another part, and, given Nar Shaddaa’s reputation, they did as best they could to not go anywhere alone. Sabine was still working on the transponder back in the room with Ezra, who was still recovering from the working the docks the day prior. It had done quite a number on him. “How’s the transponder coming along?”

Hera shrugged. “We’re getting there. I think we should be able to contact Chopper in the next day or so, assuming I can find the part I need. Once we know where he is, we can try to find a ride there. Hopefully we’ll have enough credits to get wherever he is.”

Kanan chuckled. “Well, if we don’t, I suppose we could always ask Kallus to get us a ride.”

“That’s a prospect I don’t want to think about, thank you very much.”

Kanan laughed harder. “He made it sound like a specialty of his though, so I guess it’s an option if we need it.”

“Okay, we’re changing the subject now.”

Kanan grinned, but dropped the topic. It was strange to think about, and Kanan still wasn’t sure he believed Kallus, but it was certainly an interesting possibility, and from what he could tell Kallus showed no signs of lying to them about anything. 

He paused. He knew he should tell Hera about what had happened during the night, but he wasn’t sure how she’d react. “So, I might have done something…bad last night. Well, not bad, but it was definitely a dick move.”

“What the hell did you do?”

“You know how I’m good at getting a read on people using the Force?”

“Yes…”

“Well, I can learn more about someone if I use the Force to, I’m not sure what you’d call it, maybe probe? I can use the Force to push into a person’s mind a bit.”

“Okay…” 

“And I maybe did that to Kallus last night while I was on watch.”

Hera stopped, and Kanan felt her turn to look at him. “You probed his mind?”

“I mean, not extensively, it was really just a cursory glance more than anything, but yeah.”

“Did you learn anything?”

Kanan paused, not sure how to proceed. “Well, I don’t really hear thoughts, nothing concrete like that, but I feel things. And Kallus…you know that feeling of utter exhaustion you get after working a really long day? When you feel both physically and emotionally drained?”

“I mean, he’d been working the docks all day. He, Zeb, and Ezra were all tired.”

“This was a bit different though. Like it had been a really long day for a couple of years or something.” Kanan frowned. “And he reacted immediately. Almost as soon as I started…pushing, he reacted with fear. And I mean intense fear. It took less than a minute for everything else in his mind to be overtaken by terror and panic. It was like he was having a nightmare, but in reaction to what I was doing. I ended up waking him up, and he was pretty shaken.”

“Could he have been faking the fear?”

“No, I’m almost completely sure he was asleep. And it was pure, raw fear. That’s hard to fake without a lot of training.”

“Was there any indication that he’s lying or planning something?”

“I really only got a glimpse of things, but not that I could tell.”

Hera was quiet for a moment. “I don’t think you’re going to like this, but I want you to try again.”

“Hera, with how he reacted last night, I…”

“I know, but it could give us important information, and we need that information. We don’t know what condition the Ghost is going to be in when we find her, and I don’t want to have to worry about Kallus more than I need to while fixing her back up.”

Kanan sighed. “You’re right, I don’t like it, but I’ll do it.”

XXX

_Kallus sat cuffed to the chair, unable to move. His breath was coming in shallow gasps and he could feel his hand shaking. Behind him, Thrawn laughed._

_“Have you had enough, agent?” He came up behind Kallus and wrapped a gloved hand around his throat, tilting his head up. Kallus didn’t even try to pull away. “You may have managed to keep the location of the rebel base hidden from me this time, but how much longer do you really think you can last?” Kallus tried to get his breathing under control, tried to calm down, but he couldn’t. Thrawn smiled. “You can rest assured, agent, that won’t be the last time the Inquisitor questions you. Do you think you can hide the information a second time? I’d certainly love to see you try.”_

XXX

Zeb looked over at Kallus, a little concerned. He looked terrible. He looked like he’d barely slept the night before, but had barely said a word the entire day and had taken even fewer breaks than he had the day before. They’d worked for almost 10 hours straight, and Zeb had only seen Kallus take a break two or three times.

“Man, I’m beat. I swear today felt even longer than yesterday.” Zeb sighed. “I’ll sleep well tonight.”

“Yeah.”

Zeb glanced at Kallus. “You’ve been really quiet today.” 

“Not a lot of time to talk at the docks.”

“I guess not.” Zeb paused. “You alright? You’ve seemed a bit off today.” 

“I’m fine, I’m just tired.”

“Okay, just wanted to check.” Kallus wasn’t exactly a talkative person normally, but this felt different. He’s always just seemed indifferent about talking about things, but now it felt like Kallus was actively avoiding talking about anything. Zeb watched him as they walked back to the room, concerned and more than a little suspicious. 

XXX

Kanan felt bad about this. Kallus had seemed to avoid him all afternoon after he and Zeb got back from the docks. He’d stayed as far away from Kanan as was possible in the small room, seemingly doing his best to avoid him. Kanan guessed that Kallus remembered what had happened and knew, or at least suspected, that it had been Kanan probing his mind. 

Hera’d had Kanan take Zeb’s watch that night. Zeb hadn’t protested, two days of dock work in a row had tired him out. Kallus had fallen asleep quickly, and was still asleep when Kanan got up and took over from Sabine. He’d felt exhausted when he and Zeb had gotten back, so Kanan wasn’t surprised. 

He waited until Sabine had fallen asleep before focusing on Kallus. He wanted to be more careful this time. It was possible that he’d been too aggressive the night before, which is why Kallus had reacted the way he did. Whatever the reason, Kallus had reacted strongly and suddenly, and Kanan wanted to avoid that this time if possible. He started by just observing what he could without any pressure. 

The exhaustion coming off Kallus was almost palpable. There was fear too, tied to the exhaustion. Fear of waking up. Kanan pulled back slightly out of guilt. Kallus did remember what had happened, and he was still afraid of it. Kanan knew Hera was right, this was their best chance to get an accurate reading of Kallus’ intentions, but he still felt bad about it.

Kanan sighed and pushed a little further. The same feeling he’d noticed the night before was still there, something like sadness but not quite, it was deeper and more entrenched, a mix of things. Guilt. Kanan could feel guilt. He pushed towards it, curious. Guilt for what? Kallus had never struck him as the type to feel guilty about things. The guilt was coming from memories, Kanan couldn’t see specifically what they were but they felt older, nothing recent, more recent memories just seemed to cause fear and pain. Kallus seemed to recoil as Kanan approached the more recent ones, drawing back and trying to shut them out. Kanan pushed forward a bit more, trying to see what was in the memories. 

_Burning. Something was burning him. He couldn’t move though, couldn’t pull away. He was bound, cuffed. The pain was searing, his skin was burning, but he couldn’t do anything to stop it…_

_He tried to protect his vulnerable areas but there were too many attackers. A kick caught him in the ribs, he could feel bones breaking, just ignore it, ignore the pain, they’ll leave you alone if you don’t react for long enough…_

_Exhaustion pulling at his limbs, body begging him to sleep but he couldn’t, not yet, he couldn’t spend another night in that room. He needed food, he had to keep working, but he was tired and in pain, how much longer could he even last…_

_Thrawn laughing coldly, a hand around his throat, trying to breath but he couldn’t. Vision blurring at the edges, he just wanted to pass out, for this to all stop but Thrawn pulled back just enough, keep him conscious, keep him in pain, you’ll break eventually…_

_Something tearing through him, searching, looking for information. He had to hide it, if Thrawn found it it was over, he’d find them, he’d find the base, he couldn’t let that happen. Pull away, focus on the pain, block it all out, just hide it, don’t let them find it…_

Kanan tried to pull back but the memories were flooding in and Kallus seemed stuck in them, fear taking over everything else. Terror. 

_Blood everywhere, blood and sweat and so much pain. Fear and terror. Scrambling to hide information, keep your mind impenetrable, focus on the pain and block out everything else. Push Thrawn, make him go too far, get him to kill you, it’ll be over if he kills you, just don’t let him find the information, don’t let him figure out how to find the base. It’s getting worse but ignore it, just focus on the pain, on your injuries not on the tearing sensation in your mind…_

Kallus woke up with a start and Kanan pulled back immediately, but he could still feel the terror coming from Kallus. He was breathing shallowly, ready to run. Confusion mixed with fear and pain, desperation. 

They both sat there in silence for several minutes. Kanan tried to process what had just happened, what he’d felt and seen, but there was so much of it. “Kallus, I…”

“Don’t.” Kallus’ voice was quiet, and Kanan could hear that he was still struggling to calm his breathing. “If you want answers, I’ll give them to you. But don’t ever fucking do that again.”

Kanan nodded, not sure what to say. Things were definitely going to be uncomfortable tomorrow.

XXX

Kallus sat against the wall silently. The sun was coming up and the room was starting to brighten. Everyone would probably be waking up soon, or at least Hera and Kanan.

Kallus had been awake for at least four or five hours by this point. Trying to go back to sleep after what had happened was pointless, he was far too on edge. The nightmare combined with the unmistakable feeling of someone rooting through his mind had been a terrifying combination. He should’ve known it was coming though. It was admittedly a good way of getting information, even if the information was more often comprised on emotions and feelings rather than coherent thoughts. Intentions could easily be felt out by someone who knew what they were doing. 

He sighed. This had all been much easier when he’d been on his own. Three years on the run hadn’t prepared him for having to deal with rebel custody, and he wasn’t even in real custody yet, just stuck in a small room with the never ending shitshow that was the Ghost’s crew. Honestly, being in actual rebel custody may be easier. There was always the chance they’d execute him, but Kallus was surprisingly okay with that by this point. At least he’d get some fucking rest.


	12. Chapter 12

Hera sat leaning over the table, face only an inch or two from the transponder. Sabine peered over her shoulder.

“Still getting the signal?”

Hera nodded. “Yeah the signal’s definitely there, but I can’t track it.” They’d made a break through a couple of hours ago and had picked up a signal on the same wavelength she and Chopper usually used. It almost looked the Ghost’s distress signal, but Hera couldn’t be sure, and they hadn’t been able to track where the signal was coming from yet.

Hera looked around the room. Zeb and Kallus had gotten back from the docks a little over an hour ago, which wasn’t helping things. Kanan had told Hera what had happened, and she could almost feel the tension in the air. Kallus hadn’t said anything though, and Kanan was clearly unwilling to bring it up. Add onto that the fact that they’d been on Nar Shaddaa for almost a week, and all of them were on edge and wanted to get off planet as soon as possible. Hera sighed. This was a bad time to have to deal with all of this at once. “I think I can probably track it, but I need another transponder. Nothing fancy, but it needs to be stronger than this one. Sabine, take Ezra and see if you can find something that would work.”

“Okay.” Sabine got up and flicked Ezra on the forehead. “Come on, your legs can’t be that sore anymore.”

The room fell into tense silence once the door closed. Kallus laughed quietly. “Wanted to get rid of the kids I see.”

“We have questions.”

“I’m sure you do.”

“And I figured this was a conversation best held between adults.”

“Of course.”

Zeb frowned. “What are you talking about.”

Kallus leaned his head back against the wall. “Why don’t you ask Kanan? I’m sure he’d be happy to explain.”

Kanan hesitated, clearly uncomfortable, and Hera stepped in. “Kanan had used the Force to look at Kallus’ mind to see if he could get any information on his intentions. I asked him to do it a second time last night.”

Zeb stared at them incredulously. “You did _what_?”

“You were tortured.” Kanan’s voice was quiet. It wasn’t a question.

“I was in Imperial prison for nine months. Of course I was tortured.”

Hera watched Kallus closely. “That’s nine months we know almost nothing about.”

“It was a blacklist site in the Anoat system. On one of the moons, I think. They had a mining operation there, some special iron ore compound, and the prisoners were the labour force. Everyone called it “the crypt”, but I don’t know if that was actually its name.” Kallus sighed and ran a hand through his hair, avoiding eye contact. “Treason carries an automatic death sentence, but Thrawn was able to get a nine month stay. He knew I had information, namely the location of the main rebel base, and convince the court that he could get that information from me. My stay at the crypt was split between being part of the labour force and being…questioned by Thrawn.”

Kanan nodded. “That’s what you were remembering last night.”

Zeb frowned. “Wait, you went through his memories?”

Kallus shrugged. “It’s an effective method of getting information. Even if it is unpleasant. I’ll at least give you that much.”

Hera thought about it. “You said you were there nine months. That’s the length of time Thrawn had to get information from you. If this really was a blacklist site, the security would’ve been immense. How’d you manage to escape?”

“They were transporting me for execution.” Kallus paused, still avoiding eye contact. “Listen, I understand why you did this. I could easily be a threat and you don’t trust me, and this is a very effective way to get what you want. But if you ever try it again, I won’t just react with fear.”

Hera frowned. “Are you threatening us?”

“Do I need to?” Kallus finally looked up. “You got what you wanted. You know I’m not a threat, at least not an immediate one, so don’t fucking try it again.”

“You could’ve hidden information. And threatening us isn’t exactly helping your standing.”

Kallus laughed humorlessly. “You don’t ‘hide’ anything when someone’s tearing through your mind. All you can do is try to block them, and considering I was asleep both times this happened, I wasn’t really in much of a state to be doing that.” He stared at Hera coldly. “I mean you and the rebels no harm, but if threatening you is what it takes to keep from being violated like that again, then I’ll do it without a second thought. And while I may not be a threat to you right now, I think we all know I can easily become one.”

Zeb opened his mouth and looked like he was about to say something but the door opened. Sabine ran over to the table and set down a large transponder triumphantly. “Was only 15 credits too.”

Hera raised an eyebrow. “This was only 15 credits?”

“Yeah.”

“Huh.” She opened up the back and pulled out a few of the wires, connecting them to wires from the smaller transponder. “Okay, I think this should work, but it might take an hour or two.” She glanced up at Kallus. _We’ll finish this conversation later._

XXX

Zeb would be glad when they left bars like this behind for at least a few days, but that didn’t seem like it was going to happen any time soon. Hera had managed to trace the distress signal to Nam Chorios which meant they needed a ride, and the bars near the docks were the place to go for that. And Nam Chorios probably wouldn’t be much better. _Just trading one trash heap for another._

He looked over at Kallus. The two of them and Ezra were working their way through the crowd slowly, trying to find a ride. Kallus had taken the lead, negotiating with captains in a collection of Outer Rim dialects. He’d said that getting a ride to Nam Chorios might be difficult, and it was beginning to look like it might take a while. 

Zeb was still trying to process what Hera and Kanan had done. Going through someone’s mind was no laughing matter. Zeb supposed he’d always know Kanan could do it if he wanted to, but he’d never though he actually _would_. It just seemed like such a violation. Kallus was clearly pissed too. He’d seemed annoyed all day at the docks, though Zeb hadn’t been able to figure out why until they got back. He understood why Hera had had Kanan do it a second time, but it still didn’t sit well with him. It felt too much like something the Empire would do. 

Kallus finished talking with a smuggler and sighed. “Out of all the places the Ghost could end up, of course it ended up being fucking Nam Chorios.”

Ezra frowned. “Why is it so hard to get there?”

“It’s a junk planet. Ships get taken there to be scrapped, not to pick up cargo, and the residents aren’t very pleasant. It’s a breeding ground for extremism, religious fanaticism, and violence.”

“Lovely,” Zeb groaned.

Kallus looked around. “We honestly might have more luck finding a ride in the salvage yards.”

“Why don’t we go there then?”

“Because we’re also a lot more likely to get robbed.”

“There are three of us, I think we can probably protect ourselves.”

Kallus gave Ezra an amused look and shrugged. “If you insist. Not my fault if you get stabbed.”

The bar hadn’t exactly been in a good area, whatever a “good area” looked like on Nar Shaddaa, but things just got worse as they got closer to the salvage yards. Zeb knew Ezra could take care of himself, but he kept him close to his side anyways. Kallus seemed to have a similar idea.

Ezra sighed. “You know, I can hold my own in a fight. You two don’t have to hover so close to me.”

“Bridger, you’re half the size of either of us. I have no doubt that you can protect yourself, but you’re the easiest target out of all of us and we’re being followed, so you’re just going to have to put up with it.”

Zeb glanced back. “We’re being followed?”

Kallus nodded. “Since the bar. They’ve kept their distance, but they’re definitely there.” Zeb started to reach for his bo rifle, but Kallus shook his head. “They may be the only ones following up, but they’re not the only ones with their eye on us. If you go for your weapon you could escalate the situation, and that’s the last thing we want right now.”

“Shit. You weren’t kidding about this area.”

The salvage yards themselves weren’t much better. It was starting to get dark and Zeb was feeling less and less confident about their chances of getting back to the room without having to draw weapons. It took them almost two hours, but they finally found a junk hauler going to Nam Chorios.

“He leaves at dawn, so we need to get back to the room to let the others know. By the time we get back there’ll only be about four hours before we leave.” Kallus glanced around. “Besides, I think the faster we get out of this area, the better.”

Zeb nodded in agreement. They were still being followed, and people had been watching them the entire time they’d been there. Though he didn’t want to reach for his weapon and make things worse, Zeb made sure he could grab his bo rifle quickly if he needed to.

“You lot don’t quite look like you belong here.” A figure stepped out of the shadows in front of them in the alley.

“We don’t want trouble.” Kallus’ voice was quiet and measured, but Zeb could hear he was on edge. 

“Well, then we’re in agreement, aren’t we? I don’t want any either.”

Zeb glanced back to see if they could make a quick retreat, but several figures had come out of the shadows behind them too. This was bad.

“Then what do you want?”

The man in front of them tilted his head. “You see, there’s this rumor going around that the Empire’s looking for a group of rebels, including a couple of humans and a Lasat. I’ve heard there’s a pretty good reward too, if you find them.” He grinned and a few more figures appear beside him. Zeb could tell they were armed. “Dead or alive.”

Escalation be damned, Zeb pulled out his bo rifle. Kallus had pulled a knife and lunged for the man in front of them, catching him off guard and killing him, quickly followed by the two people next to him. Zeb took a shot at the figures behind them before pushing Ezra forward. “Run!”

The alleys were narrow and dark and Zeb thought they all looked the same, but Kallus seemed to know where he was going so they followed him. Each time their pursuers started to gain on them Zeb would fire another shot at them, causing them to dive for cover. Zeb almost missed it when Kallus took a sharp right into a small alley, pulling Ezra along with him. The was a dumpster surrounded by a large pile of trash by the entrance to the alley. Kallus crouched behind it, pressing himself against the wall, and Zeb and Ezra followed suit. They held their breath as the sound of their pursuers got closer and closer, until finally they passed. Even still, the three of them sat there silently for several minutes before finally moving.

Kallus stood up cautiously, motioning for Zeb and Ezra to stay hidden for a moment before nodding. “I think we lost them. But we need to be careful, and probably avoid major roads.”

Zeb nodded. “Can you get us back from here?”

“I think so. We should only be a few miles away.”

The rest of the walk back to the room was quiet and tense, all of them watching and waiting for the sound of footsteps behind them again. Hera looked up when they got back. “Were you able to get a ride?” She wrinkled her nose. “And you all smell terrible.”

“We need to leave now. We have a ride to Nam Chorios that leaves at dawn, but people know you’re here, and they know the Empire’s looking for you.” Kallus looked out the window. “Shit. I think that’s one of them.”

Hera nodded and immediately began packing. They didn’t have much, so it wasn’t long before they were back out in the streets, making their way quietly to the dock where the junk hauler was loading up. The captain seemed surprised, and a bit suspicious,that they were there as early as they were, but he stopped complaining when they helped load the ship for no pay. 

Zeb didn’t let his breath out until they left the surface of Nar Shaddaa behind three hours later. 

XXX

Kallus leaned his head back against the wall, trying to stay awake. He was exhausted. Three days of dock work combined with only getting a couple of hours of sleep two nights in a row wasn’t a good mix. The adrenaline rush of almost being attacked and having to get off planet as quickly as possible had kept him going for a while, but he was crashing now.

He knew he should sleep. They had no idea what they were going to encounter when they landed on Nam Chorios or what state the Ghost would be in when they found it, if it was actually on Nam Chorios at all. He needed to rest, but he couldn’t quite bring himself to fall asleep. He knew it was unlikely that anything would happen, but he was still on edge about what Kanan had done the night before.

Kallus closed his eyes, trying to shut out the memory of how it felt being questioned by the Inquisitor. It was like fingers digging through his mind, probing and tearing to find what they wanted. He knew why Kanan had done it, and why Hera had had him do it again, but he hated it. He hated the feeling, the sense of having no control, the feeling of violation. 

“You look like shit.”

Kallus opened his eyes, startled. Zeb had sat down next to him. “Just tired.”

“Yeah, it’s been a long couple of days.” Zeb paused. “I didn’t get to ask you on planet, but are you okay?”

“Why wouldn’t I be?”

“Well, I…” he sighed. “I know I wouldn’t be okay if someone went through my mind. I’d be freaked out and angry. I just wanted to make sure you were alright.”

Kallus didn’t say anything for a minute. “It’s…hard. I wasn’t lying when I said it was an effective way to get information, so I understand why they did it. But I also wasn’t lying when I said that it wouldn’t end well if they try it again.” He stopped, not sure how to proceed. “It’s just…the feeling of having someone in my mind is something I never want to have to feel again. I don’t exactly have the best associations with it.”

Zeb nodded. “It shouldn’t happen again.” He put a hand on Kallus’ shoulder. “You should get some sleep. You really do look terrible.”

XXX

“Have you heard anything else from Chopper?”

Hera shook her head. “No, just the distress signal. I’m positive it’s the Ghost’s signal though, so at least there’s that. She should be there somewhere on Nam Chorios.”

Kanan sighed. “I’m just worried what condition she’ll be in.”

“Yeah, me too.” Hera leaned against the wall and looked around. The storage area was surprisingly large, but igt was dark and crowded. Piles of junk and scrap metal were precariously secured all over the place. It was a cheap ride though, and they’d even managed to drop the price even more by helping load the ship. Of course, that had been more out of necessity than anything else, but still. Hera turned to Zeb. “So what exactly happened back on Nar Shaddaa?”

“We ended up having to go to the salvage yards to find anyone willing to go to Nam Chorios. I mean, the area we were staying in wasn’t exactly nice, but the yards were in a bad area. We had a group following us, and we got cornered when we tried to head back after finding a ride. Apparently word had spread that the Empire was looking for a crew with a few humans and a Lasat. We had to act fast and things got ugly.”

Kanan raised an eyebrow. “Got ugly?”

Zeb shrugged. “Kallus killed three people and I shot at the rest of the group. Then we ran like hell.”

Hera sighed. “I knew sending the three of you was a bad idea.”

“In our defense, they made a definitive threat to kill us and turn us in to the Empire, so I feel like our actions were warranted.” 

“Still, you and Ezra aren’t exactly subtle people. Out of the three of you, I think Kallus is the only one who has any ability to act quietly, and he was the only one without a weapon.”

Zeb thought for a moment. “Actually, he had a knife. I don’t know where he got it from though.”

Hera looked up sharply. “A knife?” Zeb nodded. “Does he still have it on him?”

“I don’t know. It didn’t even really register for me that him having one wasn’t good until now.”

“Well, if he was planning on using it on us, he probably would’ve done so already.” Kanan shrugged. “He’s had plenty of opportunities. And besides, from everything I can tell, he has no intentions to hurt us or turn on us. If he really has been working in the Outer Rim for the past couple of years, it would make sense that he’d have some sort of weapon on him at all times.”

“Well you’d know what his intentions are,” Zeb muttered.

Hera sighed. “Zeb…”

“It just doesn’t sit well with me, okay? Going through someone’s mind while they’re asleep is something the Empire would do. It not what we do. It just feels wrong.”

“I don’t like it either Zeb. I’m not kidding when I say Kallus was absolutely terrified. I was in his mind as everything he felt was taken over by fear, and I feel terrible about it. But I was able to get information we really needed, and I’m a lot more inclined to believe what he says now that I know there’s something backing it up.”

“I know, but it still doesn’t sit well with me. And it’s not sitting well with him either.”

Hera glanced over to where Kallus was sitting. He seemed to be asleep. “You talked to him?”

Zeb nodded. “He made it sound like this isn’t the first time it’s happened.”

“It’s not.”

Hera and Zeb both looked over at Kanan. “What do you mean?”

“I didn’t get coherent thoughts or anything, but I did experience snippets of memories from his point of view. A couple of them involved someone going through his mind. My guess is he was probably questioned by an Inquisitor or someone similar. They’re the only ones I can think of in the Empire that would have the skills to do that. Given how unpleasant those memories were, even just the small pieces of them I saw, I can understand why he doesn’t want it to ever happen again.” Kanan paused. “I can’t tell you exactly what happened, but I can tell you that, whatever it was, it was bad, and several of the memories directly involved him trying to protect the location of the rebel base.”

Hera looked back over at Kallus. “Do you think he’s telling the truth? That he really did betray the Empire?”

Kanan thought about it for a minute. “Yeah.” He nodded. “I do.”


	13. Chapter 13

_Kallus watched the guards carefully. He had no illusions. This was his last chance; if he didn’t escape now, he’d be executed. He had to be careful though. Security may be weaker than it was at the crypt, but it was by no means lax._

_The cuffs were a newer model, but he was familiar with them. The primary locking mechanism was a pressure spinglock system, which wasn’t that hard to get out of if you knew what you were doing, but the ship was quiet enough that the release would be audible. He had to make sure he had an escape route as soon as he got out of the cuffs._

_He wasn’t sure it was even worth it honestly. Why bother escaping? What was the point? He’d spent the last nine months wishing Thrawn would kill him, that everything would finally end and he could just rest. Why not finally let it happen? Why not finally rest?_

XXX

Hera didn’t think Kallus was asleep, but she wasn’t sure. He was leaning against the wall with his eyes closed, but he’d been asleep earlier, and he didn’t seem like the type to stay asleep for long.

“Did you need something?” Kallus opened his eyes and looked up at her.

Hera crossed her arms. “You said you work primarily in the Outer Rim, right?”

“For the past three years, yeah.”

She hesitated for a moment, then sat down next to him. “What do you know about Nam Chorios?”

“I know there’s not much work there. It’s a junk planet, so most of the people who run routes there are salvagers and junk haulers. It also borders uncharted space, so it’s pretty lawless.” He shrugged. “As unpleasant as the crowds on Sleheyron and Nar Shaddaa are, even they do their best to avoid places like this.”

“Lovely,” Hera sighed. “Of course this is where the Ghost ends up being.”

Kallus laughed quietly. “You all really do have terrible luck, don’t you?” He paused. “In all seriousness though, we need to be careful on Nam Chorios, and I’d keep your allegiance to the rebellion quiet.”

Hera frowned. “I wouldn’t have pegged Nam Chorios as friendly to the Empire.”

“It’s not, but it’s not exactly a friend to the rebellion either. Planets like this are home to violent extremists and men with no loyalties and nothing to lose.”

“You certainly paint a lovely picture of it.” Hera sighed again and stood up. “You should get as much rest as you can. The more I hear about Nam Chorios the less convinced I am that we’re going to find the Ghost in flyable condition.” Hera paused, considering what she was going to say. “I’m sure we’ll need your help getting her up and running again.”

Kallus looked surprised. “I figured I’d have to argue with you about helping with repairs.”

Hera shrugged. “Based on the ride to Nar Shaddaa, you clearly have at least some level of mechanical experience. And even if I don’t quite trust you yet, I’d rather take that risk than run into Thrawn again.”

“That makes two of us.”

XXX

The streets of Nam Chorios were dirty. Trash sat piled up against buildings, and the few people in the streets looked just as dirty as their surroundings. They’d left the main area around the docks almost 15 minutes ago. Things had been a bit better there, but not by much. The entire planet seemed to be dismal and covered in junk, and the heavy cloud cover didn’t help, creating a perpetual dusk.

Hera couldn’t bring herself to care about that at the moment though. She stared at the small screen on the transponder carefully. They were getting closer to the source of the signal, but they still probably had at least a few more miles.

The signal was strong, but it hadn’t changed at all since she and Sabine had first found it. She knew it was probably nothing, but what if something had happened to Chopper? What if that was why the signal hadn’t changed at all? Chopper may have been an asshole, but he was her droid, and she didn’t know what she’d do if something happened to him.

She looked up when she felt someone’s hand on her shoulder. Kanan gave it a reassuring squeeze. “I’m sure Chopper is fine.”

“Yeah, I hope he is.” 

The streets continued to get worse and worse. Trash and discarded mechanical parts piled up higher against the sides of buildings, and suspicious eyes watched them from the shadows. Any doubts Hera’d had about Kallus’ description of Nam Chorios were being quickly dispelled. It really did seem to be as bad as he’d made it sound, and Hera was afraid of what that meant for her ship and droid. 

“Is that...is that it?”

Hera looked up, concerned by Sabine’s tone of voice. It took her a moment, but after a minute she noticed the lopsided form of a ship leaning into a pile of junk. It was half stripped of parts, but some of Sabine’s graffiti was still visible. It was definitely the Ghost. Hera looked around. “If that’s the Ghost, the Chopper should be somewhere. Where is…” An outburst of angry grunts caused her to whip around. “Chopper!”

Chopper wheeled out of an alley, waving his arms and making a whole array of angry noises. Hera laughed. “Yes, yes, I know, it took us a while. I’m sorry.”

Sabine crossed her arms. “Considering you were the one that was supposed to watch the Ghost on Tatooine, I’d say it’s more your fault than ours that we’re even here.” Chopper grunted mockingly, then motioned to Kallus. “Yeah, we ran into him on Tatooine. Claims he switched sides.”

Chopper rolled over to where Kallus was standing, circling him suspiciously. Kallus backed up slightly, hands raised in what almost looked like surrender. He watched the droid with a mix of caution and bemusement.

Hera grinned, glad to have Chopper back. “Come on, we need to get to the ship. You can inspect him later.”

Kallus looked over at her. “I would prefer not to be inspected at all, thank you very much.”

“You try telling him ‘no’, and see how it goes.”

It was another five minute walk to what was left of the Ghost. As happy as Hera was to have Chopper back, the ship looked like it was in terrible condition. Chopper explained that the smuggler who’d stolen the ship had stopped on Sleheyron before bringing it to Nam Chorios to be sold for scrap. From the look of it, he’d probably made a decent profit.

Ezra looked at the ship skeptically. “Are you sure we can even get this flying again?”

“That bad?” Kanan sighed.

“Yeah, it’s basically gutted.” Sabine looked over at Hera, who was assessing the damage under the control panel. “Think we can get it back up and running?”

Hera sat back on her heels, thinking. “It’ll take a couple of days and she won’t be very pretty, but yeah, I think we probably can.” She looked over at Kallus. “What’s your experience with light freighters?”

He shrugged. “They’re pretty common smuggling ships, so I’ve worked with them a fair bit.”

“Good. We’re definitely going to need your help if we want to get out of here before Thrawn shows up.” She looked back under the control panel and sighed. “This isn’t going to be fun.”

XXX

Thrawn read the report carefully. An informant had tipped them off that the Ghost’s crew was on Nar Shaddaa. He’d sent agents there immediately to intercept them, but the crew had managed to leave the planet yet again before they’d arrived. For a group of backwater terrorists, they were annoyingly hard to catch. Thrawn had informants and a couple of undercover agents scouring the dock areas, trying to figure out where they’d gone.

He sighed in frustration. It would be satisfying when he caught them, when he saw them executed. He’d get information from them first though. He’d been close to breaking Agent Kallus when his time had run out and Kallus had been taken for execution, escaping en route, and Thrawn highly doubted the crew would last nearly as long as he had. The Jedi, perhaps, but not the rest of them. They would break easily. 

Agent Kallus though, he would be the most satisfying to break. Thrawn knew that any information he managed to get from him likely wouldn’t be as valuable as information from the Ghost crew, but his inability to break Kallus previously still bothered him. He’d been close; a couple more visits from an Inquisitor and Kallus would’ve broken. His execution date had been the only thing that saved him. This time, though, Thrawn would break him. Just to show that he could.


	14. Chapter 14

Kallus stared at the mess of wires in front of him. Parts had clearly been ripped out carelessly and wires hung loosely from places they should’ve even been in the first place. Even in the Outer Rim, ships were usually in better condition than this. 

“How’s it look under there?”

“I’ve seen wrecks that were in better condition than this.” Kallus sighed and sat up. “It’s been almost completely stripped. At least half the system is going to have to be completely rebuilt and rewired, and that’s just if we want basic system features running.”

“Great.” Hera leaned against the wall. “The engine’s nothing more than a shell by this point, the hyperdrive system’s completely pulled apart, electricity’s barely working at all, and now the nav system’s wrecked too. It’ll take a month before we get the Ghost back up in the air.”

“At least we’re on a junk planet. Basic parts should be pretty easy to find, and it’s far enough in the middle of nowhere that it’ll hopefully take Thrawn a little while to track us down again.” Kallus laid back down and looked back up at the panel, trying to figure out where at least some of the wires were coming from, but he could feel Hera still watching him. He paused. “I’m not going to do anything to slow down repairs on the ship if that’s what you’re worried about. I want to run into Thrawn even less than you do.”

“No, I don’t...I don’t think that’s something you’d do. Though I think it’s a pretty strong claim to say that you want to run into him even less than we do. I think you might be underestimating how much we don’t want to run into him.”

Kallus chuckled. “Yeah, well you weren’t tortured by him. There are very few things in this universe I’m afraid of, but he’s one of them.”

Hera shifted uncomfortably but didn’t say anything for a moment. “I’ll be down working on the engine if you need anything.”

“Okay. I’ll be up here trying to figure out where the fuck all these wires are coming from.”

XXX

_The darkness was the hardest part. It erased time. Kallus had no idea how long he’d been in there; it could’ve been an hour or it just as easily could’ve been five. The best he could figure, they were left in their cells to rest for around six hours, but he had no way of knowing for sure._

_Kallus knew he should get at least some sleep, he was exhausted, but he couldn’t bring himself to close his eyes. As much as he wanted to sleep, sleeping would just make the night go by quicker, and he wanted to prolong it as long as possible. All that would be waiting for him at the end of the night were beatings and hard labour. Even exhaustion was better than that._

XXX

Kallus sat up, breathing hard. He tried to orient himself but the room was too dark. Where the hell was he? The room was small and bare, and he was the only one in it. He could feel panic rising in his chest. _You’re back there. You’re back in that cell, you never escaped. Any moment the door will open and you’ll be taken to be questioned by Thrawn or the Inquisitor…_

He tried to calm down. He wasn’t at the crypt. “You’re on the Ghost.” Saying it outloud made it feel more real. His voice was shaking still, but just hearing it helped. He was safe, it was okay.

The crew may have trusted him somewhat, but they still didn’t trust him enough to leave him unguarded during the night. The storage closet had a working lock and couldn’t be unlocked from the inside, so here he was. It wasn’t a very large room, but it was far from the worst place he’d slept. 

He leaned against the wall and stared up at the ceiling, doing his best not to think about the fact that he was locked in. It made the room feel too much like a cell, and he knew going down that path wouldn’t do him any good right now. 

XXX

Zeb tried his hardest not to laugh. Chopper was circling Kallus slowly as he drank a cup of caf and occasionally glanced over at Chopper in annoyance, but he mainly seemed to be trying to ignore the droid. 

Zeb had been out most of the day with Ezra trying to find parts for the Ghost while Kallus and Sabine had helped Hera with repairs. According to Sabine, Chopper had been bothering Kallus all day, coming up to him, grunting angrily, then wheeling away before Kallus could do anything. Zeb watched the two of them, amused.

“I can see you over there smirking.” Kallus looked over at him. “It’s not nearly as amusing as you seem to think it is. He hasn’t left me alone all day.”

“So I’ve heard.” Zeb tried to sound serious, but couldn’t quite pull it off. Kallus just glared at him. 

Hera stuck her head in, grinning. “Chopper still circling you? I don’t think he likes you.”

Zeb laughed. “In all fairness, I don’t think Chopper really likes much of anyone.”

“I hate both of you,” Kallus muttered, turning back to his cup of caf.

Hera shrugged. “I don’t mind it. At least it means one of us doesn’t have to be guarding you all the time.”

“How convenient for you.”

Zeb got up and walked across the room, clapping Kallus’ shoulder as he passed. “Come on, lighten up a bit.”

Kallus frowned. “I don’t really have a “lighter” setting. Unfortunate side effect of being bitter and full of spite.”

“Well, you’re stuck with us for now, so I think you’ll have to develop one, or else you’ll be miserable.”

Kallus just sighed and went back to his caf.

XXX

Hera leaned against the counter and sighed. Zeb glanced up at her from where he was sitting. “Repairs not going well I take it?”

She shook her head. “The engine’s in even worse shape than I thought, the life support and nav systems have been ripped apart, and the hyperdrive looks like a herd of banthas trampled it. I mean, I doubted we’d find the ship in good condition, but this is pretty extreme.”

“Do we have any way of contacting Sato or someone else in the rebellion?”

“No, our transponders aren’t strong enough, and the communication system is almost completely gone. In terms of repairs, I’d rather focus on the systems we absolutely need to get the Ghost in the air before anything else, just in case we have to leave in a hurry.”

Zeb nodded. “Probably a good idea.” He paused. “Have you had any issues with Kallus?”

“No, he’s been fine. I’m still not used to how, I don’t know, passive he’s become, I guess? I keep expecting him to be as combative as he used to be, but he’s just so quiet now. He’ll occasionally ask a question about the mechanics of the Ghost, but other than that he just works quietly.” She shrugged. “Also, Chopper won’t leave him alone, so I don’t have to have anyone watching him, which makes things easier.”

Zeb laughed. “Yeah, Kallus definitely isn’t as pleased about it as you are.”

“Well, it’s either that or we keep him locked in that storage closet until we get back to base. Chopper may be annoying, but I think even Kallus would agree he’s the better option of the two.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for the lack of updates, my thesis has been kicking my ass a bit. this update is a bit short, but I hope you guys enjoy!


	15. Chapter 15

As much as Ezra hated it when people treated him like a kid, he did his best to stay close to Zeb as they searched for parts. Between the two of them, he knew he was the much easier target, especially since it wouldn’t be a particularly good idea to use the Force or his lightsaber right now. They were trying to keep a low profile, and using either of those would probably just draw attention to them. Not being able to use two of his most effective weapons made him vulnerable, and he knew ignoring that was a bad idea.

Kallus hadn’t been lying when he’d said Nam Chorios was a junk planet. Piles of scrap metal and discarded parts were everywhere. Scrap yards were everywhere, run by unpleasant men who put Ezra on edge. Some had tried to ask where he and Zeb were coming from or where they were going, why they needed the parts, but they never gave a straight answer; questions always had ulterior motives on planets like this. It would’ve been better if they could’ve avoided the scrap yards in general, but they needed parts if they were going to get the Ghost up and running again before Thrawn found them. 

“This planet smells.”

Ezra looked over at Zeb. They’d been going from scrap yard to scrap yard for hours now, trying to find engine parts for Hera. “Yeah, even Nar Shaddaa was better than this.” He sighed. “The smell, the weather, the people, this entire planet puts me on edge.”

“I’ll be glad when we’re gone, but it doesn’t look like that’s going to be happening anytime soon.” Zeb sighed. “You’d think it’d be easier to find parts for the Ghost on a fucking junk planet.”

“Maybe we should see if Kallus has any tips. He was helpful on both Sleheyron and Nar Shaddaa, so maybe he’d be helpful too.” Ezra wasn’t crazy about asking Kallus for help, but if it helped, he was willing to do it. Anything to get off this planet before Thrawn showed up. 

“According to him, he hasn’t done much work here, plus he’s helping with repairs, but no harm in asking I suppose.” Zeb shrugged. “And I’m sure he wouldn’t mind the chance to get away from Chopper for a while.”

Ezra laughed. “Yeah, I’d probably jump at that chance if I were in his place. The two of them don’t seem to be getting along very well. Sabine thinks it’s hilarious.”

Zeb grinned. “Honestly, so do I. It’s so…” Ezra looked over when Zeb paused. He was frowning. “I think we’re being followed. We might want to call it a day.”

Ezra nodded and rested his hand on his blaster. “Probably a good idea.”

XXX

_Kallus sat at the table, watching the room carefully. This was dangerous and could easily go very wrong. He gripped his blaster a little tighter, the feeling of it in his hand calming his nerves slightly._

_“I think we might be looking for each other?” Kallus looked up and nodded. Zeb sat down across from him. “I’m surprised you wanted to meet in person. All of our correspondences have been electronic so far.” Kallus slid a small data drive across the table. Zeb picked it up and slid it into a pocket. “I’m sure the rebellion will be grateful for this information. Everything you’ve given us so far has been extremely helpful.” Kallus nodded. Zeb raised an eyebrow. “You’re really not much of a talker, are you?” Kallus shook his head. “Can I at least get a name? Something to call you?”_

_Kallus sat there for a moment. It’d be easy to tell Zeb who he was, to reveal his identity. It was tempting, it really was, but he knew it was a bad idea. The rebellion would never trust him. He was more useful if they didn’t know who he was. He shook his head again._

_Zeb shrugged. “Okay then. You know how to contact me.”_

_Kallus watched Zeb go, feeling oddly empty. Zeb had looked exactly like he had when Kallus had last run into him and he’d felt so familiar. All Kallus had to do was get up and follow him, catch up with him and tell him who he was, admit his identity, and he wouldn’t be so alone anymore. He couldn’t do that though. He couldn’t jeopardize his role as an informant for that._

_He got a drink and sat in a shadowy corner of the bar for a while after Zeb had left. The drink was bitter and tasted antiseptic, but it was strong and helped Kallus ignore how truly alone he felt._

XXX

Kanan was used to being the first one awake. It had been part of his Jedi training and he’d never really gotten out of the habit. Hera was an early riser, but not quite as early, and Zeb, Ezra, and Sabine would sleep all day if they could, so he was used to having at least a few hours each morning where he was the only one awake. So it was odd to feel someone else awake this early, though he supposed he shouldn’t be that surprised. Kallus didn’t seem to sleep much.

It occurred to him as he was unlocking the door to the storage closet that Kallus could try to escape, but he dismissed the thought almost immediately. “No use keeping you in here if we’re both awake.”

“If it were anyone else, I’d wonder how they knew I was awake.”

“And if it were anyone else, I’d wonder why they were awake.”

“Fair enough.”

Kanan set about making caf. “You really don’t sleep much, do you?”

“I’m used to long hours. Sleep’s often a luxury I can’t really afford.”

They fell into silence for a few minutes. Kanan leaned against the counter awkwardly, waiting for the water to boil. This was the first time he’d really been alone with Kallus since he’d pushed into Kallus’ mind. Kallus hadn’t brought it up since they’d discussed it on Nar Shaddaa, but Kanan couldn’t help but think of the memories he saw every time he was around Kallus. He was startled out of his thoughts by the water boiling. “Did you want a cup of caf?”

“That’d be great, thanks.”

He set a cup down on the table by where Kallus was sitting and walked back to the counter to pour himself a cup, but paused. “Kallus, I…I’m sorry. About what happened.”

“I know. I understand why you did it, it’s fine.”

“No, that’s not what I mean, though I am sorry about that too.” Kanan paused. “I saw some of your memories from your point of view. I saw, I _felt_ …I know I only know a fraction of what happened, but it was enough to know that it was bad. And I’m sorry.”

“Thank you.” Kallus’ voice was quiet, but Kanan could hear it shake slightly. They sat there in silence again, not as awkward but much heavier, until Kallus took a deep breath. “I should probably get back to working on the nav system. Thanks for the caf.”

“Yeah, of course.”

XXX

“Have you done much work on Nam Chorios?”

“No, I avoid this place as much as possible.” Kallus’ voice was slightly muffled coming from under the bridge console. “Why?”

Zeb sighed. “Ezra and I aren’t having any luck finding the parts we need. You seem to know this sort of world better than either of us, and Ezra thought you might be able to help.”

Kallus slid out from under the console and sat up. “I’ve only been to Nam Chorios a couple of times, and neither of them for very long, so I’m not sure how much help I can be.” He frowned. “The only thing I can think of is to not be super strict about the model of part. A lot of parts from different ships are at least somewhat interchangeable which would make finding parts a lot easier, but I don’t know the Ghost very well. Definitely check with Hera about how much she’s comfortable with using interchanged parts.” He laid back down and went back to working.

Zeb nodded. “How’s it going with the nav system?”

“Terrible. It’s an absolute mess. I don’t even know where half these wires are coming from.” He sighed. “It doesn’t even need to be fully functional again, all we really need is for it to be working enough to chart a course, but even that might take a while.”

“Yeah, Sabine said she’s having a similar issue with the life support system.”

“This entire ship is a mess. I don’t know if…” Kallus stopped as Chopper wheeled in, grunting suspiciously. Kallus sighed again. “I’m working on the nav system, you trash pile. Exact same thing I was doing yesterday.”

Zeb laughed. “Still not getting along, I take it?”

“I truly believe that droid has it out for me.” Chopper grunted angrily and purposefully ran into Kallus’ leg. Kallus swore. “I swear to the Maker, I will take you apart for spare parts.”

“I’ll let you get back to work.” Zeb grinned. “Have fun. Don’t take Chopper apart, or Hera will kill you.”

“I hate both of you.”

XXX

Thrawn reread the report. An informant had spotted two humans and a Lasat in the salvage yards looking for a ride several days earlier, but didn’t know where they were heading. It was the best lead they had to the Ghost crew’s whereabouts, but there were still a lot of unknowns. 

The salvage yards were an interesting place to try and find a ride off planet. It wasn’t a normal place to look, and salvage yards tended to be more dangerous than the areas around the docks, so it was risky too. That meant that whatever ride they were looking for, there was something about the salvage yards that made them a distinctly better place to look than the docks.

Thrawn thought about it. There must have been a specific destination the crew was trying to get to, or else they would’ve just gotten a ride from the docks. What sort of place would salvagers be more likely to go to than smugglers or merchants though? It would have to be somewhere with relatively little trade, but it still had to be useful for salvagers.

Junk planets. Thrawn smiled as the realization dawned on him. Planets like that were the last stop for old ships and scrap parts and were scattered throughout the Outer Rim. They had very little trade and smugglers and merchants usually avoided them, but they were the primary stop for salvagers and junkers. The sort of destination where you’d be more likely to find a ride in a salvage yard than by the docks.

There were multiple junk planets within reasonable distance from Nar Shaddaa, but simply knowing the sort of planet to look for narrowed the search for the Ghost crew significantly. And if their destination was a junk planet, that likely meant their ship was in poor condition. They wouldn’t be going anywhere anytime soon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> who needs to work on homework when you can write fic instead?


	16. Chapter 16

Sabine crouched down by the console with two cups of caf. “I made some caf, figured you might want some.”

“Oh, you’re wonderful.” Kallus slowly disentangled himself from the mess of wires beneath the console and sat up, taking one of the cups of caf gratefully. “How’s the life support system coming along?”

Sabine sighed. “It’s a mess. Literally all we need to get back to base is ventilation and heat, and I’m not sure I can even get that. How’s the nav system?”

Kallus shrugged. “About the same. At least Hera seems to be making slow headway with the engine. We may not be able to figure out where we’re going and we may not survive the flight, but at least we’ll be able to take off.”

Sabine held her cup out. “To…optimism, I guess?”

“To optimism.” Kallus took a drink of caf and looked up surprised. “You make your caf surprisingly strong. I’m impressed.”

Sabine laughed. “Yeah, Hera’s the only one who makes stronger caf than I do. Ezra hates it and constantly complains when either one of us brews it.”

“Of course Bridger can’t handle strong caf. Doesn’t surprise me in the least.” Kallus downed the rest of his cup and laid back down under the console. “Thanks again for the caf. Let me know if you need a hand with the life support system.”

Sabine stood up. “Yeah, no problem.”

XXX

Hera sighed in frustration. The Ghost had had its fair share of accidents and had ended up in pretty terrible condition several times, but this was worse than it had ever been before. Sabine had finally gotten the life support system partially up and running, and Kallus had made at least some progress on the nav system, but the engine was barely working and the hyperdrive system was still a complete mess. Their ability to take off was questionable at best, and even if they managed to get off the ground there was no way they were making out of the system at any significant rate. If Thrawn showed up any time soon, they were screwed. 

Hera stuck her head into the engine room. She’d asked Kallus to work on the engine a bit while she focused on the hyperdrive system. “How’s it going?”

“I actually wanted to ask you something.”

“What’s up?”

“It might be easier if you came over.”

Hera walked around the engine over to where Kallus was working. He was sitting on the ground between the wall and the engine, wearing a sleeveless shirt. She crouched beside him and frowned, taking off her own jacket. “Fucking hell, it’s hot in here.”

Kallus nodded. “That’s actually what I wanted to talk to you about. The hoses that connect the coolant system to the engine are missing. It looks like they had a specific locking mechanism on each end, is that right?” Hera nodded. “Are there any other hoses on the ship that use the same locking mechanism?”

Hera shook her head. “No, these were unique to the engine.” She sighed, realizing what Kallus was getting at. “Which means we don’t have a replacement part.”

“Exactly.” Kallus nodded. “Theoretically, I should still be able to connect the coolant system to the engine, but I’d have to weld the hoses onto the engine. I’m not sure how well you’d be able to patch that, so it would maybe be permanent.”

Hera pursed her lips. “Yeah, it probably would be, which definitely isn’t ideal. Is there any way to repair it without doing that?”

“Not unless Ezra or Zeb can find the specific part.”

“And I doubt that’s going to happen.” Hera sighed. “Where would you be welding the hoses?”

“Here and here.”

Hera paused. She’d been so focused on the engine that it wasn’t until Kallus had pointed to the two areas on the engine that she noticed the scars. The were scattered across his arms, some small but others disappearing under his shirt. There was a large scar on his forearm that almost looked like a brand.

“Hera?”

Hera looked up, slightly startled. “Yeah, sorry, zoned out for a minute.” She thought for a moment. “Go ahead and connect the hoses to the engine. It won’t be great, but we can make it work.”

XXX

“You’re quite a sight.”

Zeb frowned. “What exactly is that supposed to mean?”

The man shrugged. “Meant no offense. Just don’t see a lot of your kind here.” 

Zeb moved his hand quietly to the handle of his bo rifle. He didn’t like where this was going. “Do you have the part we’re looking for or no?”

The man watched them carefully. “I might. Curious what you need it for though.”

“Our business isn’t your concern.” Ezra’s voice was tense and on edge. 

They stared at each other silently for a moment before the man shrugged again. “Meant no offense. Just curious. Give me a minute, I’ll see if I have that part.”

Zeb watched as the man rifled through piles of junk, but he didn’t let go of his bo rifle handle. “You know, I think it may be best if I stay with the ship from now on.”

Ezra nodded in agreement. “Good idea, before someone figures out who you are.”

XXX

Hera looked up from the Ghost’s hyperdrive schematics as Kallus walked into the room, followed by a disgruntled Chopper. “Please tell me you’re not making another cup of caf.”

“That’s exactly what I’m doing.”

“How many cups have you had today?”

Kallus paused, thinking. “This makes six, I think.”

Hera stared at him. “You’re not going to sleep for days.”

“Like that’s any different from normal.”

“That still doesn’t make it a good idea.” She sighed and looked back down at the schematics. “Make me a cup while you’re at it, yeah?”

“Sure.” They stood in silence as the water boiled. “You can ask about them, you know.”

Hera frowned. “Ask about what?”

“My scars. You were looking at them earlier.” Hera looked down, uncomfortable. “It’s fine, really. I know they’re rather noticeable.”

She looked over at Kallus carefully. He had his back to her. “I…it looked like you’d been branded.”

“They marked all prisoners accused of treason or crimes against the state. It makes you a target among the other prisoners and keeps you from gaining allies.” He shrugged. “I usually keep it covered since it basically advertises that I’m an escaped prisoner, but I’m pretty sure none of you are going to turn me in to the Empire.”

“And the…other scars?”

“Some of them are older, from when I was an agent. Most of the others are from torture.” Kallus walked over and set a cup of caf on the table in front of Hera, glancing at the schematics. “How’s the hyperdrive coming along?”

“I, um…slow. We’re still missing a lot of parts. It’s better than it was though.” Hera took a drink of caf and frowned. “Fucking hell, Kallus, how strong did you make this?”

Kallus grinned. “Considering I basically run on caffeine and spite, as strong as I could. I’ll be working on the engine if you need anything.” Chopper grunted loudly and wheeled after Kallus, who sighed. “I’m working on the exact same thing I’ve been working on all day you scrap heap, calm down.”

XXX

_Kallus didn’t even bother fighting back. He knew he was too weak, and fighting would just make things worse for him. That didn’t make it hurt any less though._

_He instinctively tried to pull away as the glowing metal neared his arm, but it didn’t make any difference. The metal seared into his skin. The pain was blinding, but above it he could faintly hear Thrawn laughing._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> bit of a short update, but I hope to be able to write more frequently now that break's coming up


	17. Chapter 17

Kallus stared across the small room, eyes long since having adjusted to the dark. He’d barely even given the pretense of trying to sleep. He’d had enough caf to keep a normal person awake for days at a time, and his erratic sleep schedule, if it could even be called a schedule by this point, meant he was used to being up for several days without sleep anyways, so it hadn’t really been worth trying. 

He glanced down at his arm. The lines of the brand stood out faintly in the dark. He could still remember the searing pain of the burning metal against his skin. He’d been back in the mines the next day, arm bloodied and burning with pain. It would’ve left a scar even under ideal circumstances, but working in the mines had meant that the wound never had the chance to heal properly, and the scar it left was quite large. It had been that way with most of his wounds, and it hadn’t been uncommon for his shirt to be covered in blood by the time the day was over, even on days where he wasn’t tortured. 

It hadn’t been until after Hera had left the engine room that he’d really realized she’d noticed his scars. He wasn’t surprised, they were rather noticeable after all, and he knew it was a conversation that would’ve had to happen eventually anyways. The crew may have been more comfortable with him now, but they were still a long way from trusting him, and he was sure they still had a lot of questions. And even if he hadn’t had to explain any of his scars to them, it certainly would’ve come up once they reached the rebel base. Nothing stayed secret when you were a prisoner.

Kallus leaned his head back against the wall and sighed. At least he’d only had to explain the scars on his arms. The scars on his back and torso had much the same story, but they were much more extensive. It hadn’t been an issue on the docks, most of the workers there had their own share of scars, some of them even more extensive than his own. No one asked, no one said anything, it was simply an accepted fact of life. It was different for the Ghost crew though. He could tell Hera had been surprised, or at least caught off guard, by the scars on his arms. He doubted she would have a much better reaction to the rest of them.

It felt odd, admittedly, to have someone react to his scars like that. They just felt so…normal by this point. What had happened certainly still affected him; the nightmares didn’t happen as often as they used to, but there were still plenty of nights were he woke up gasping and drenched in sweat. But it all felt so normal now. The nightmares, the memories, the scars, they were just a part of his life now, and had been for over three years. He supposed that probably wasn’t healthy, but he’d never had much time to worry about that.

He looked back down at the faint outline of the brand on his forearm. The mark of a traitor. A death sentence. He knew he should probably feel something when he looked at it, anger, fear, pain, _something_ , but all he could feel was the dull acknowledgement that it was there.

XXX

Zeb was surprised to find Kallus already up and working by the time he woke up. Zeb had managed to wake up even before Hera had, which was a rare occurrence, and he’d just assumed that Hera was the one who unlocked the storage closet that they kept Kallus in at night. Kallus was already up and working on the engine though, Chopper circling around him suspiciously in the engine room. Zeb frowned. “Surprised you’re already up.”

Kallus shrugged. “Kanan usually unlocks the door when he wakes up. I’m beginning to think he sleeps almost as little as I do.”

“Hold over from his Jedi training apparently.”

“Makes sense, I suppose.” Kallus leaned back against the wall and took a drink of caf. “Bridger said you had a bit of trouble at one of the salvage yards yesterday.”

“Unfortunately, I tend to stand out a bit. It’s probably best if I lay low for a while and Ezra looks for parts with someone a bit less noticeable.”

“Yeah, that’s probably a good idea.” 

Zeb looked over at the engine. “How’re repairs coming?”

“They’re…coming. I’ve reconnected the coolant system to the engine, so we should be able to take off without it overheating, but we’re still nowhere near being able to get out of the system. Sabine’s got the the life support system almost completely up and running though, so we’re making at least some progress.” Kallus sighed. “It won’t be pretty, but we should be able to get the Ghost back in the air eventually.”

“Let’s just hope Thrawn doesn’t show up before that happens.”

Kallus laughed. “Given your track record, I’m not particularly confident in that. I assume this is going to end like most things with you all seem to end: a panicked escape amid a chaotic shootout.” Chopper grunted and Kallus looked down, surprised and amused. “Well, this is a momentous occasion. I think Chopper actually just agreed with me on something.”

Zeb frowned down at the droid, who beeped smugly. “Thanks for the vote of confidence, asshole.”

XXX

The engine room was not particularly large, and Kallus was not a particularly small man. He’d lost a fair amount of weight while in prison, and hadn’t even come close to gaining most of it back, but he was still well over six feet, which made the engine room relatively cramped. Adding a clunky and ill-tempered droid to the mix certainly did nothing to help.

Kallus sighed as Chopper ran into his leg for what felt like the hundredth time. “Will you watch where you’re going for once?” Chopper grunted sarcastically and Kallus rolled his eyes. “Yes, I know you don’t trust me, you’ve made that abundantly clear. That doesn’t mean you need to try and break my leg every time you decide to move.” Chopped wheeled around and purposely rammed into Kallus’ leg again. “For fuck’s sake, you scrap heap! Do that again, and I’ll use you to fix the fucking engine.”

“You two getting along?”

“I’ve met mercenaries who were friendlier than your droid.”

Hera laughed. “Yeah, that sounds about right.” She stuck her head into the engine room. “Leave him alone, Chop, he’s trying to help.” Chopper swiveled to look at her before beeping disappointedly. “I mean it.” Hera stared at Chopper for another minute before looking back up. “I know you said you haven’t spent much time on Nam Chorios, but do you think you know it well enough to know where to look for parts?”

Kallus shrugged. “I could probably figure it out. Why?”

“Zeb was attracting too much attention, so it’s probably best if he stays at the ship for now, but I don’t want to send Ezra out to look for parts alone. Kanan went with him today, but I thought you might be a little better equipped to help. Sabine’s almost done working on the life support system, so she could work on the engine if you’re not here.”

“Sure, as long as you’re okay with it. Just let me know what specific parts we need.”

Hera watched him for a moment. “You really just go with whatever now, don’t you?”

Kallus shrugged again and went back to working on the engine. “Why not? Not like I have much of a choice most of the time anyways. You just get used to it after a while.”

XXX

Kanan pulled his hood up against the wind. Nam Chorios was much colder than he would’ve expected, though he supposed he shouldn’t be surprised. The planet seemed to be relatively horrible in all other respects, so there was no reason its weather would be any different.

They were having better luck finding parts than they’d had yesterday, but it was still slow going. Kallus had taken the lead in talking to scrap yard owners. If the crew had trusted him more, Kanan had no doubt he would’ve been able to find the parts they needed on his own, but even he would’ve been slightly hesitant to do that, and he knew he trusted Kallus more than the rest of the crew.

Kanan knew he didn’t have to go with Ezra and Kallus, but he figured he was at least slightly more useful here than he was back at the ship. He got around quite well even without his sight, but there was very little he could do to help with repairs. At least out here he could be helpful if they got into a tight situation. 

He could feel that Kallus was on edge. None of them liked Nam Chorios, but Kallus seemed to particularly dislike it and distrust its inhabitants. Though he didn’t know for sure, Kanan assumed Kallus was most likely armed. He apparently had been on Nar Shaddaa, and he seemed even more on edge here. 

“I’ll be glad when we’re off this junk heap,” Ezra muttered. They were waiting on a scrap yard owner, who seemed to be taking his time seeing if he had the part they needed.

Kanan nodded. “I’ll second that. This entire planet makes me nervous.” He stopped as he heard the scrap yard owner walk back towards them.

“I don’t have that part right now, but I’m getting a shipment in tonight. I might have it if you come back tomorrow.”

“What makes you think you’ll get it in this shipment?” Kallus’ voice was even, but Kanan could hear suspicion in it.

“Shipment’s coming in from Florrum. I usually get a decent amount of light freighter parts in shipments from there, and you said that was the type of ship part you were looking for. No promises or nothing, but there’s a chance I might get what you need. Don’t want to completely turn away customers if I might be able to help you.” Kanan could almost hear the greasy smile in the man’s voice.

“Or get us to pay for something.” Kallus sounded unimpressed and no less suspicious than before. “Thank you for your time.”

“I don’t trust him.” Ezra’s voice was quiet as they walked away.

“Neither do I, but we need the part.” Kallus sighed. “We won’t get off the ground without it. If we can’t find it anywhere else, this might be a risk we have to take.”

XXX

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not dead! I am, however, procrastinating on my homework. Enjoy!


	18. Chapter 18

“I don’t like it. It feels like a trap.” Zeb crossed his arms and leaned against the counter. “Are we sure we need this part?”

Hera nodded. “We do if we want to be able to get off the ground. We can’t take off without it.”

“Is there any way we could jerry-rig something together to just get us to the base?”

Hera shook her head. “It’d be too risky.”

Kanan sighed. “I agree with Zeb, this definitely feels like a trap, but it seems like our only option.”

“Well, it might not be our only one.”

Zeb frowned and looked over at Kallus. “What do you mean? The only other scrap yard that you guys found with the part was charging way too much. We don’t have enough credits, and you said yourself there’s not much work here.”

“I’ve never worked with the yard owner, but I know the name. He has a bit of a reputation.” Kallus shrugged. “From what I’ve heard, credits aren’t the only way we could pay for the part.”

Hera stared at him. “Kallus, are you suggesting you sleep with him to get it?”

Kallus shrugged again. “Wouldn’t be the worst thing I’ve done.” He paused. “Or worst person, for that matter.”

Sabine grinned. “I say we go with that option.”

“Don’t start, Sabine.” Hera pinched the bridge of her nose. “Maker, we are _not_ having this conversation.”

“I’m just saying, there is another way to get the part. I think going back to the other yard is a trap too, so we should consider all of our options before making a decision.”

“So, either we walk into what’s almost definitely a trap, or you sleep with the owner of a Nam Chorios scrap yard.” Kanan sighed and turned to Hera. “Are you absolutely sure there’s no way we can take off without this part?”

“Trust me, we would if we could.” Hera thought for a moment. “I’m inclined to go with the first option. I’d feel more comfortable with it, and as long as we’re prepared, I think it’s probably the better bet.”

Zeb nodded. “I can always go too, just as backup.”

Kanan shook his head. “I don’t know if that’s such a good idea. You were already starting to draw attention, and I’m not sure the extra firepower is worth the risk of someone recognizing us from an Imperial bounty.”

“Yeah, you’re probably right.” Zeb sighed. “Are you guys okay with going into a potential trap?”

Ezra shrugged. “At least we’re prepared for it this time.”

XXX

“I assume you have a weapon?”

“Probably should’ve asked me that before we left. But yes.”

Kanan laughed quietly. “Ever since you apparently stabbed someone on Nar Shaddaa, I just figured it was a given. Thought I should check though.”

“Fair enough. It’s generally a safe bet to assume I have a knife.”

“Hmm, I maybe wouldn’t tell Hera that.”

“I wasn’t planning on it.” Kanan could hear Kallus grinning. “Honestly, I’m so used to carrying it, I forgot I had it until the incident on Nar Shaddaa.”

“I’m surprised you don’t carry a blaster.”

He felt Kallus shrug. “The only sort of blaster I’m able to afford is pretty low quality. Knives are quieter, easier to conceal, and they don’t jam.”

Kanan nodded, and they continued in silence for a while, Ezra trailing behind them by a couple of yards. “You don’t think this is a good idea, do you?”

“No, I don’t.” Kallus sighed. “We both know we’re walking into a trap, and I likely could’ve gotten the part from the other scrap yard without it turning into a shootout.”

“I’m surprised you didn’t push the subject more then.”

“My…methods clearly make most of you uncomfortable, and it is possible we’ll be able to get the part from here without too much of an issue, so I figured it wasn’t worth it.”

“Well, in our defense, we’ve had to seriously readjust our view of you. It’s going to take us a bit.”

“That’s fair. I also know you’re hesitant to allow me out of sight on my own, which would’ve been a requirement if we went with the other yard.”

“Yeah, I don’t think anyone would’ve volunteered to go with you on that.”

Kallus laughed quietly. “Good. Even _I_ wouldn’t have been comfortable with that.” 

XXX

Kallus could see Bridger relax slightly after they got the part from the scrap yard, but he wasn’t convinced they were out of the woods just yet. The purchase itself had gone surprisingly smoothly; the scrap yard owner recognized them and searched for the part, selling it to them without any hassle once he found it. Kallus knew they could still be attacked, though. This way, even if they managed to escape, the yard owner was guaranteed to at least keep the money they’d spent on the part. 

Kanan was clearly still on edge too, at least more so than Bridger. He had more battle experience than Bridger had, and seemed to understand that their risk of being attacked had not gone down any significant amount, if at all. 

Kanan was the first one to realize they were about to be attacked. Kallus supposed it had something to do with his Force abilities, but he didn’t have time to think on it. He whipped around, barely dodging a crowbar swung at his head. Years of military training and instinct kicked in almost immediately.

Kallus counted 7 attackers, but he knew it was possible that there were more out of sight. Bridger had the part and was the least experienced out of the three of them, so protecting him was the top priority. He hadn’t seen Kanan in a fight since he lost his vision, though, and while he doubted Kanan would need any help normally, both he and Bridger were trying to avoid using the Force so to avoid revealing their identity. 

He was too focused on the two attackers in front of him and didn’t notice the third coming up behind him until he felt the metal pipe slam into his ribs. Probably cracked a couple, but he could worry about that later. He ripped his knife through the throat of one man and pulled the second attacker in front of him to block another swing of the pipe. He felt the dull thud and crack as the pip slammed into the man’s neck and dropped him to the ground. He caught the third swing with his hand and pulled the pipe away, slamming it into his attacker’s head. 

It became clearly rather quickly that their attackers had bitten of more than they could chew and had not expected the three of them to be this prepared. “Well, that went better than I’d feared it would be.” Kanan was out of breath, but seemed fine.

Kallus nodded. “We should get moving though. At least two of them got away, and they might come back with reinforcements. I’d rather not be here if that happens. You alright, Bridger?” He frowned when he didn’t receive an answer. “Bridger?” He looked around, concerned, stomach dropping when he finally caught sight of Bridger. “Shit.”

“What? What happened? Is Ezra alright?” The fear was palpable in Kanan’s voice.

“Ezra, can you hear me?” Ezra was leaning against a wall, face bloody and eyes closed. Kallus crouched down in front of him, trying to figure out where the blood was coming from.

Ezra groaned and opened his eyes slowly. “Kallus?”

“Yeah, it’s me. Kanan’s here too. Glad you’re still with us, can you tell me what happened?” The blood seemed to be coming from a wound on the side of his head. “It looks like you took a pretty nasty blow to the head.”

“Yeah, didn’t see the guy coming…” Ezra’s voice trailed off.

“Hey, Ezra, I know you’re tired, but I need you stay awake, okay? Try to stay conscious.”

“How bad is it?”

Kallus glance back at Kanan, who was crouched behind him, face creased with worry. “Head wound. Pretty nasty, but he should be alright. We need to get him back to the Ghost so that Hera can take a look at him.” He turned back to Ezra. “Do you think you can stand?”

“Yeah, ‘m fine…” Ezra tried to push himself up, without luck.

Kallus sighed. There was no way Ezra could walk back to the Ghost in his condition. He was barely staying conscious as it was. He turned slightly, hooking an arm under Ezra’s arms. “Hook your arms around my neck, I’m going to carry you, alright?”

“‘M fine,” he repeated insistently.

“I’m sure you are, but humour me, okay?” Ezra finally obliged and Kallus stood up slowly, shifting him so that he could carry him on his back.

“Are you alright Kallus? Are you sure you can carry him back?”

Kallus winced, trying to ignore the pain in his ribs. He’d definitely at least cracked a couple of them in the fight. “Yeah, I’m fine. Besides, he definitely can’t walk on his own. Not in the state he’s in right now.” He glanced back at Ezra. “Hey, you have to stay awake, remember? You can sleep when we get to the Ghost, but you have to stay awake until then.”

“‘M awake,” Ezra muttered.

“You grew up on Lothal, right? I’ve heard it’s beautiful there. Tell me about it.” Kallus smiled in relief as Ezra started mumbling about his home planet. He wasn’t exactly making much sense, but at least he was talking.

XXX

Kanan cursed his blindness. He felt useless. Ezra was injured, and pretty seriously from the sounds of it, but there was nothing he could do. He couldn’t see the wound to treat it, and he didn’t dare try to help carrying Ezra. He got around fine despite his lack of sight, but the ground was uneven and littered with scrap parts and he didn’t want to risk misstepping and falling or dropping Ezra. 

Kallus was keeping Ezra talking, making sure he stayed awake. He’d let Ezra ramble until he started to go quiet again before interjecting with another question to keep Ezra going. He was clearly injured, Kanan could feel that he was in pain, but he insisted he was fine, saying they just needed to get back to the Ghost as quickly as possible.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enjoy :)


End file.
